I consciously live in the slow lane for television but the fast lane for new music. So it is that almost everyone now operates in a multi-speed world when it comes to news. Politics has always been multi-speed, but now the fast and slow lanes are becoming detached. In a world of algorithmic-driven discovery, a scandal might be reported for months or years before it blows up in public consciousness. The biggest consequence is that fast-lane occupants — politicians, the press — can slip into easy condescension about slow-lane residents. People who do not actively seek out news are not any stupider or less morally engaged.

For a long time, Boris Johnson’s scandals were described as “not cutting through” or “priced in.” The long collapse in his popularity took news-obsessed bubble dwellers by surprise, but it was visible in polls long before the Conservative Party suffered a “shock” defeat in North Shropshire in 2021. Nor is this confined to one spectrum. The Peter Mandelson scandal, which weakened Keir Starmer’s standing, had damning information available in summer 2023. We’re seeing this again as Nigel Farage’s approval erodes over his finances, with questions since at least 2021 when he was duped into recording a message celebrating the IRA.

The lesson: guessing what registers with casual followers is a fool’s errand. People who do not follow politics closely are every bit as switched on — they just pay less attention day to day. Political parties would be wise to treat each new scandal with the seriousness it deserves.