How a Conservative politician feels about wearing a mask tells you something about what worries them most: their voters, or the good opinion of their colleagues. Ordering the public to wear masks on public transport and in shops is extremely popular in the country at large, but it is fiercely resisted in parts of the Tory party.
One Conservative politician jokes that colleagues who feel nervous about their re-election prospects are easily identifiable because they feel bound to wear a mask in the House of Commons. After Sajid Javid declared that he would wear a face covering on days when the Commons is crowded, another Tory texted me to say that the Health Secretary had clearly abandoned hope that he would one day become party leader.
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