The following is a small excerpt from my book, “2017”, available now in digital form and paperback. How much is it the fault of the Left that the rise of the New Right has taken place? In some sense, it is entirely the fault of the Left. After the 2008 crash, the Left became bizarrely […]
This one Daily Telegraph article tells you everything you need to know about why UKIP never succeeded as a political party
There is a live debate around whether Stoke Central was UKIP’s Waterloo or not. I have thrown my hat into the ring already, saying that I think it was; however, such a declaration was not made without a certain amount of nervousness on my part. UKIP have been written off by the cognoscenti many times […]
Which Labour MPs might throw in the towel next? I speculate
A few months back, when Jamie Reed and Tristram Hunt both decided to stop being MPs around a similar time period, a rumour was afloat in Westminster that “dozens” of Labour members of parliament were lined up to quit politics should either Copeland or Stoke Central be lost. Since the first part of that has […]
Corbyn just screwed over Scottish Labour to add to the mix
I like Kezia Dugdale. I think she is trying her best in a bad situation – and getting less than no help. Anyone within Scottish Labour calling for her to go should look at the bench and see she is far and away the best option right now as leader. On that no help thing – I […]
How Brexit became everything – a “2017” except
The following is a small excerpt from my book, “2017”, available now in digital form (http://amzn.to/2lXBAdp) and paperback (http://amzn.to/2kYXmhh). Why did Britain vote to leave the European Union on June 23rd, 2016, in a nutshell? Like any election victory of any kind, the Leave vote was a big tent of different interests who rallied together […]
“Road to Brexit” by Jeremy Corbyn – a review
Yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn gave a speech in Westminster yesterday about, well, the road to Brexit. Coming on the same day that the loss of Copeland was announced, it took on an interesting texture. Introducing the event was Sergei Stanishev, a Bulgarian MEP who is the president of the Party of European Socialists. I think perhaps Labour […]
The four key lessons from Copeland and Stoke Central
1.Labour are really screwed. I mean, really screwed In a seat that had basically been Labour since 1924, Copeland was a major loss for Corbyn’s crew, whatever certain quarters might tell you. Stoke Central was held in the end, but only due to Labour’s vastly superior ground campaign. The Tories realised too late in the […]
Who will win in Copeland and Stoke Central? A final prediction
Today’s by-elections in Copeland and Stoke Central are – it is safe to say without the dreaded hyperbole – epoch defining. So what’s going to happen? Here’s where I nail my colours to the mast. To say I’m worried about this would be to devalue just how shaky I feel about these predictions: we really […]
Why aren’t the Lib Dems doing better in the national polls? A possible answer
How you emotionally respond to the question I’ve posed in the headline will have a lot to do with your politics. “Who cares?” might be one. “They’re doing pretty well given the tuition fees fiasco” might be another. “Who cares about the national polls – look at all those local by-election wins!” will paint you […]
How what Corbyn is now doing is killing Labour…..forever
Tory campaigners in Copeland are feeling very confident. Most of this comes from what they are hearing on the doorstep. “It’s like nothing I’ve ever heard. You turn up to former Labour voters houses thinking you’re going to have to make an anti-Corbyn case and they’re way ahead of you. The dislike of Corbyn is […]