Excellent piece Simon. I know some first time Labour voters...the usual suspects, well to do/well off chaps disenchanted with Rishi and thought (were gaslit by!?) Starmer would be some sort of Blair. They all regret their vote, but as I remind them daily, this is all on them, they have to own it! I think Labour is finished. I feel there has to be a chance politics in the UK changes fairly dramatically and this could happen quite soon. The sheer tangible incompetence and horrendous optics of Labour's politics of envy I feel could mean the end of them as a political force as soon as the next GE, and likewise the Tories unless by some miracle they find some unity of purpose, conservative values and actually perform their role as HM Opposition.... the major poltical parties could splinter....and we could end up with 5 or 6 major factions + SNP and the N Irish, Welsh parties etc who would somehow need to form a left or right coalition. It would be like Germany but worse because of FPTP distorting who wins the seats. I suspect we will see a Tory/Reform pact of somesort which current polling would wipe the floor with the left. a LibDem / Green union could be the opposition....but for this to happen, parties may have to agree to not run MPs against other parties, and I do not see the Tories doing this. 4+ years to go....let's hope Starmer hasn't given the Falklands away by then and caused too much permanent damage to our economy, social structure and national security - I will not hold my breath.
Thanks Matt. Ian Hislop - not my favourite smug champagne socialist - put it best after the budget when he asked "What did you expect? A socialist government enacting socialist policies, what a shock".
A four or five way contest does appear a distinct possibility, with the nationalists joining the left-wing coalition. It seems unlikely that either Labour or Tory parties would go willingly, but when the plates beneath our feet shift they end up in unexpected places.
Excellent piece Simon. I know some first time Labour voters...the usual suspects, well to do/well off chaps disenchanted with Rishi and thought (were gaslit by!?) Starmer would be some sort of Blair. They all regret their vote, but as I remind them daily, this is all on them, they have to own it! I think Labour is finished. I feel there has to be a chance politics in the UK changes fairly dramatically and this could happen quite soon. The sheer tangible incompetence and horrendous optics of Labour's politics of envy I feel could mean the end of them as a political force as soon as the next GE, and likewise the Tories unless by some miracle they find some unity of purpose, conservative values and actually perform their role as HM Opposition.... the major poltical parties could splinter....and we could end up with 5 or 6 major factions + SNP and the N Irish, Welsh parties etc who would somehow need to form a left or right coalition. It would be like Germany but worse because of FPTP distorting who wins the seats. I suspect we will see a Tory/Reform pact of somesort which current polling would wipe the floor with the left. a LibDem / Green union could be the opposition....but for this to happen, parties may have to agree to not run MPs against other parties, and I do not see the Tories doing this. 4+ years to go....let's hope Starmer hasn't given the Falklands away by then and caused too much permanent damage to our economy, social structure and national security - I will not hold my breath.
Thanks Matt. Ian Hislop - not my favourite smug champagne socialist - put it best after the budget when he asked "What did you expect? A socialist government enacting socialist policies, what a shock".
A four or five way contest does appear a distinct possibility, with the nationalists joining the left-wing coalition. It seems unlikely that either Labour or Tory parties would go willingly, but when the plates beneath our feet shift they end up in unexpected places.