So here we are, still in a state of uncertainty. But not entirely. We know who the Lord Chancellor is. It's still Jack Straw. We know who the Attorney General is. Lady Scotland is still in post.

And who might replace them? Would the Liberal Democrats insist on a nominee of their own as the price of support - for either Labour or the Tories? We simply don't know.

David Pannick used to support the Liberal Democrats before he became a cross-bench peer. I can't see him taking on the poisoned chalice of Attorney General. Nor can I see Michael Howard becoming a Tory Lord Chancellor, even though he will be given a seat in the Lords.

But the Conservatives would need someone as Solicitor General in the upper house. They might have to parachute someone in. One QC whose name has been mentioned is David Anderson, of Brick Court Chambers. Another name, rather better known, is Jonathan Sumption, joint head of the same chambers.

And if Labour hang on? Surely we wouldn't still have Jack Straw as Lord Chancellor? But who else have they got?