The Tory general election campaign hit more trouble on Saturday as Rishi Sunak faced accusations of using levelling up funds to win votes and Labour opened its biggest poll lead since the disastrous premiership of Liz Truss.
As Sunak tried to fire up his party’s campaign before the first crucial TV debate with Keir Starmer on Tuesday, it emerged that more than half of the 30 towns each promised £20m of regeneration funding on Saturday were in constituencies won by Tory MPs at the last election.
Some 17 of the £20m pots went to towns in areas won by the Conservatives in 2019, although two of those were no longer held by Conservative MPs when the general election was called.
Just eight awards were made to towns in Labour seats, although many of the party’s strongholds tend to be in more deprived areas in need of levelling up money.
The funding pledge led to accusations from Sunak’s opponents of “pork barrel” politics, while those involved in regeneration of the north said the announcement was more about winning votes than levelling up.
The row came as the latest Opinium poll for the Observer on Sunday gives Labour a 20-point lead – the highest level it has recorded since Truss was briefly running the country.
This is despite Labour having endured a torrid week on the election trail and days of infighting over whether veteran Diane Abbott should be allowed to stand again.
Labour is on 45% – up four points on last weekend, while the Conservatives are down two points on 25%. Reform is up on one on 11%, the Lib Dems down two on 8%, and the Greens down one on 6%.
The poll also showed more people (45%) thought the Tories’ big announcement last weekend – the reintroduction of a form of mandatory national service for 18-year-olds – was a bad idea than thought it was a good one (35%).
Seriosly that would be hilarious. And honestly looking at electoral calculus. Very doable if younger voters make an effort to agree and turn out.
Unfortunately it means voting lib dem in large numbers. As they are the only party predicted to gain seats close to the tories. Also they are where moderate tory voters are likely to go if scared of labours left leaning support.
Atm electoral calculus puts tories at a predicted 66 seats. Take some time to laugh at that one.
Lib dems at 59. So moving 4 or more safe tory seats to lib dem really would do this.
Looking at the electoral calculus predictive models. It would take an average of a 10 % swing in what they call Lib Dem medium strength seats.
Honestly this is very doable if younger anti tory voters turn out in much higher number then normal. And agree tory removal is more important under fptp. Then voting you actual desires for more left of centre options. Those options have low odds of gaining these seats anyway.
Come on guys. Sell how funny having the tories as not only out. But not even in opposition would be to your friends.
I live in a historically tory safe area. Where both boundary changes and polling. Make it a lib dem predicted win. Hell it looks like most of oxfordxhire is predicting lib dem atm. With the City going labour.
Also it would mean an opposition party that trully supports an end to fptp. And has done since the 80s at least. So question time will become a bit more interesting. If actual spending policy becomes little more then minor bickering.
The lack of enthusiasm for Labour plus the desire to get the Tories out should make it easier to hold your nose and put a cross on the page.
I could definitely see a Troll the Tories spin on tactical voting going viral.
I’m all for figuratively wiping out the Tories, but I’ll be extremely surprised if they end up with less than 100 seats.
Honestly so would I. Shy tories have always been a thing.
But as I say. 10 % swing from current polling in what electoral calculus calls lib medium support seats. There are 53 of these. So 53 seats currently predicted to go tory. That a high turn out of young motivated voters could change the predictions on.
Far from impossible. It just take a normally under represented voting block to agree. Tories need a undeniable message.
If you have other social networks, go ahead and inspire your circle. Meme it. Inspire your friends to do the same.
Wouldn’t
It
Be
Fucking
Glorious
To
Be
Rid
Of
Them?
What’s wrong with voting Lib Dem?
A lot of people haven’t forgiven them for the Coalition - a vote for them back then turned out to be a vote for the Tories.
Students in particular got fucked due to the tuition fee pledge roll back. I can see the conservatives using that as a wedge against the lib dem student vote in those seats.
The great British public utter failing to understand coalition politics - if you want the Lib Dem’s to have to make less compromises the key is to vote in more Lib Dems… not less. Of course a government that is mostly Conservative is going to do mostly Conservative things. But it also did some Lib Dem things, which is better than no Lib Dem things! The idea that ‘Vote Conservative and be fucked’ is more compelling than ‘Vote Lib Dem and be a bit less fucked’ goes a long way to explaining the mess this country is in.
I agree that the coalition was probably better than a full conservative government, they both had to get rid of their stupid/extreme policies.
Still stuck me with 10s of thousands more student loan though… I’m over that now… Mostly.
The debt sucks. A progressive graduate tax would probably have been better - then you couldn’t just avoid it by having rich parents, or avoid the interest by paying it off quick by going into banking. But, you know, tax…
The only reason it’s not a tax is to save older, more likely-to-vote generations (who have a higher earnings differential from their degrees than younger folk) from having to pay it too, concentrating the cost on the currently-young.
Lib Dems could have formed a coalition government with labour instead of forced a Tory minority government and a quicker return to the polls. Clegg chose power over his party.
“If you want daddy to stop beating you, just mind your manners and be better behaved”
Because they are feckless liars who reneged onall their promises the first time they tasted any power. They are also just a useless centrist party that more or less supports everything the Tories stand for while wanting to appear “nice” about it.
They aren’t a proper left wing party (neither are Labour these days but you take what you can get) but I prefer them to the Tories because they’ve always been willing to call Brexit the shitpile that it is. If my seat could go Tory or Lib Dem, I’d vote Lib Dem every day and twice on Thursdays.
I nominate you for best written sentence on the Internet today.
Dear Lord. Your punctuation. Is. Atrocious. .
Yeah shit happens when trying to type on a tablet. And visually impaired,
So honestly if you fail to understand ask.
Or just keep it to your self. No one needs your opinion is this situation.
I misread “tablet” as “toilet”. 🤦♂️
Lol. Well ill assure you. This post was not edited their.
This post ;)
Opinions are like arseholes. Nobody needs yours either.
I need my arsehole, though.
I mean it’s not a lot of fun, but the alternatives are much worse.