But Cameron and Margaret Thatcher were not, in this regard, a million miles apart. Mrs Thatcher put more emphasis on the role of the individual, which was hardly surprising considering the context in which her thinking developed. She had seen the postwar state grow to crowd out individual initiative. Cameron, reflecting his upbringing in an English village, looks more to community and to volunteering. Essentially, both were saying that the big state is not the answer and that personal responsibility is.

Cameron's and Hilton's error was to talk patronisingly, in a way which suggested they were the first to discover these truths. The pitch should have been more modest and, yes, conservative: how can we encourage more of what is already being done? All over Britain are people who help out. It might involve assisting in the running of their son's or daughter's sports club, or volunteering for a local charity. They think of this as life, not the Big Society. 

Steve Hilton will be back in some form, probably to help with the general election campaign, but it is unlikely he will ever occupy a position of power equivalent to the one he has enjoyed at Cameron's side for the last six years. The Big Society will not be back.