suggest that if he ever wants to lead the Lib Dems he will have to distance himself from Clegg. "I don't think so at all," he says. "Nick is one of my closest friends, and I would never engage in that artificial distancing for other reasons." But surely all politicians have an eye on the top of the greasy pole? "You may think this makes me a lesser politician, but genuinely I spend my time thinking about the job I'm doing. That's the truth." Alexander has risen so rapidly and anonymously that you wonder whether the fall might be just as sudden, not least because for the Lib Dems power relies on the quirks of electoral arithmetic. "What will be will be," he says. "I'm going to do the best I can for as long as I have the chance to do it. I want to be able to look myself in the mirror and say I did the things I thought were right." He apologises for sounding pious and bids me goodnight, saying he has to spend an hour reading emails from the Treasury and pressing his shirt. He ascends the staircase clutching an ironing board borrowed from the hotel reception: an appropriately no-frills image for the minister who has to convince us of the virtues of austerity.  This article was amended on 1 August 2011. The original said surely all politicians have an eye on the top of the greasy poll? This has been corrected. Comments Talking