For politicians the point of politics is to change the world. It is the chance of doing this that makes politics different from other professions. Yet in Britain today political leaders face the inconvenient fact that those who elect them do not really want their world changed. Today, then, Tony Blair had to dance carefully between talking big and offering small. But his promises were limited, affordable and rational.
Every step is writ through with managerialism, involving targets, numbers and spending.
Ideology matters less than action. Even the party's pledge card, unveiled last week, is packed with numbers. And anyone who opens the manifesto will be left reeling. Truly, this is the age of the bullet point and the fact box. Tailored to its consumers, the manifesto does not even challenge on an issue on which the government is likely to act bravely in the next 24 months - the euro.