political column

And here a little matter of incompatibility cropped up. The incompatibility is between the much-trumpeted provisional transition deal with the European Union, and the health of the British fishing industry.

A series of MPs from fishing constituencies jumped up at Prime Minister's Questions to ask about the deal because they fillet (sorry) will hit British fishermen. And women, obviously.

Drew Hendry (Inverness & Nairn) of the SNP pointed out that last week the PM had been quoted as saying Britain would leave the Common Fisheries Policy in March 2019. But now the UK was staying in the policy with no say on quotas - "the worst deal imaginable."

He was throwing a stone in a glass house, as the SNP wants to stay in EU and therefore the CFP, something Mrs May was not slow to point out.

Not so easily dismissed was Mark Francois, a Tory backbencher, who wanted an assurance that Britain would "absolutely and unequivocally" take back control of our waters at the end of the transition period.

It was not an assurance he received. Instead he got some flannel about a future economic partnership, new relationship, and taking back control of our waters, but without any specific commitment.

After the solemn business of the use of a nerve agent on a British street of recent weeks, the House was back to its raucous knockabout self.

Here was the SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford. He started off by asking whether the Prime Minister would agree that subverting the democratic process was unacceptable.

Then he bowled his googly. The parent company of Cambridge Analytica, he said, Strategic Communication Laboratories, had been run by a chairman of Oxford Conservative Association (Aaah!), its founding chairman was a former Conservative MP (Aaah!), a director appeared to have donated over £700,000 to the Tory party, (Oooh!), and a former Conservative treasurer was a shareholder (Oooh!).

"We know about the links to the Conservative Party. They go on and on. Will the Prime Minister reveal to the House her government's connections to the company?"

Mrs May preferred to answer a subtly different question: "As far as I am aware the government has no current contracts with Cambridge Analytica or the SCL group."

As for the main course, Jeremy Corbyn, obviously with council tax bills dropping through people's doors in mind, used all his questions to challenge her about funding for local councils and slashed public services.

"There's one message for everybody - and that's that a Conservative council costs you less," she retorted.

Which more or less summed up all her replies to his series of questions, although somehow she managed to get in a dig about alleged anti-Semitism in the Labour Party.

Mr Corbyn's theme was summed up by this: "They cut funding and expect councils to pick up the pieces... As people open their council tax bills, isn't it clear what the Conservative message is - to pay more to get less?"

Some Salopians opening their Shropshire Council council tax bills might find it difficult to disagree with the paying more and getting less bit.

Shrewsbury and Atcham MP Daniel Kawkczynski got in a question about Future Fit.

"The clinically led Future Fit programme for Shropshire seeks to improve and modernise hospital services across the county of Shropshire. We have been waiting for a decision on this issue for many years," he told her.

"Could the Prime Minister use her good offices to ensure this vital scheme is supported in the coming weeks so we can secure this vital investment for Shropshire NHS?"

Theresa May: "My honourable friend is right to speak up for the NHS in Shropshire in the way has done. He will be pleased to see my Right Honourable Friend Secretary of State for Health and Social Care heard his comments and I think will be contacting him about this issue."

Tom Pursglove told her about a new recyclable paper cup developed in his constituency.

"If she is around afterwards I would be able to give one to her," he said, to rising ribald laughter.

"If he'd like to come along and see me afterwards..." she replied.