Many British MPs of all parties are very interested in US politics, headed by Gordon Brown. He is so up with the fashion that he has a personally dedicated copy of the new book The Audacity of Hope by Senator Barrack Obama, the rising Democratic star and possible presidential candidate in 2008.

This close interest in American politics has meant that ministers are realistic about the likely aftermath of the midterm elections. In private, ministers to whom I have spoken are delighted with the humbling of the Republican Administration — which many regard as a disaster — and especially with the resignation of Donald Rumsfeld. They are critical not so much of the original decision to go to war, in which many were involved, but, rather, the crass ineptitude of the Administration’s handling of post-Saddam Iraq.

However, there is no expectation, or even desire, within the Blair Cabinet for a dramatic change in policy on Iraq. There is general support for the insistence yesterday by Margaret Beckett that there will be no “precipitate” moves to withdraw British troops in the current “dangerous and volatile” situation. In her speech to the Royal United Services Institute, Mrs Beckett expected the United States to conduct a “continuous reassessment” of the position rather than see a “major upheaval” in policy. The main focus of British interest, and activity, is the bipartisan review being conducted by James Baker and Lee Hamilton, which could lead to a big change in the coalition approach.

More generally, senior ministers do not have high expectations about the Democrat takeover. This is partly because the majorities are not nearly large enough to withstand a Bush veto, and also because the Democratic victory is largely a reaction to Iraq, Administration incompetence and scandals affecting Republicans. There is no positive Democratic programme comparable with the Contract with America that the Republicans proclaimed when they took over Congress in 1994. The main specific Democrat promises are about the minimum wage and Medicare.