All posts tagged: general election

Sixth Of Tory Voters Likely To Die Before Next Election

Sixth Of Tory Voters Likely To Die Before Next Election

A sixth of Conservative voters may die before the public are next called to the polls because of the party’s older demographic, analysis claims. Focaldata has found voters are now more likely to vote blue when they turn 64, compared to 42 in 2019, as the party leans on support from the older generations. In the last five years, one in ten of voters who backed Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party have already died. Analysis by The Times using Office for National Statistics population estimates suggests this trend will accelerate during this parliament. The stats suggest 1.2m Tory supporters will have died by 2029, which is 17% of the party’s vote share. In comparison, only 500,000 Labour voters – or 5.3% – are expected to die in the same period, because the party has been attracting younger supporters. It does not consider how voters tend to shift to the Conservatives as they age, although this is a trend that is changing with younger generations. Keir Starmer’s party is also expected to scoop up the backing of …

How Worried Should We Actually Be About Election Interference?

How Worried Should We Actually Be About Election Interference?

Shortly after Rishi Sunak announced the general election, a committee of parliamentarians warned him that hostile states could reach the “British public far more easily than ever before”. Fears of interference in democratic processes are nothing new, but the National Security Committee said the UK is a particularly “attractive target” to malicious actors looking to disrupt the country this summer. As election day creeps closer, what threats could we realistically face, where are they coming from and are we doing enough to stop them? What triggered these national security concerns? The National Security Committee told Sunak in May that hostile actors could be tempted to interfere with the UK. It formally attributed malicious activity targeting UK institutions and individuals to hackers working for Russian intelligence services and China. Moscow is a particular cause for concern, considering the UK government said in 2020 that it was “almost certain that Russian actors sought to interfere in the 2019 general elections”. According to the committee, we can “expect to see the integrity of our systems tested again” now, …

Tories Election Campaign Grows Desperate As July 4 Nears

Tories Election Campaign Grows Desperate As July 4 Nears

With a little over two weeks until the general election, one thing is becoming more apparent every day. The opinion polls are not shifting and the level of panic in Tory headquarters is becoming more acute. The first signs of this came last week, when Grant Shapps raised the possibility of Labour winning a “super-majority”. Leaving aside the question of how that is different from a normal majority, the defence secretary appeared to be conceding that Keir Starmer is not on course to win, but to win big. The Tory campaign was no longer about trying to get Rishi Sunak re-elected prime minister, but about trying to limit the size of the seemingly inevitable Labour victory. Although the PM himself said all the right things about fighting for every vote, if anything, the Tory campaign has become even more desperate this week. Responding to yesterday’s launch of Reform UK’s election manifesto, a Conservative spokesperson warned that a vote for Nigel Farage’s party could put Labour in power for a “generation” – widely considered to be …

Nigel Farage Skewered By Susanna Reid Over Reform Candidates

Nigel Farage Skewered By Susanna Reid Over Reform Candidates

Nigel Farage was called out repeatedly by presenter Susanna Reid on Tuesday over the Reform Party’s controversial list of candidates. Since launching its election campaign, Farage’s populist party has been forced to drop multiple candidates as offensive comments online resurfaced. Only on Monday, candidate Grant StClair-Armstrong had to quit after it was revealed he had previously endorsed the British National Party (BNP). And on Tuesday, Reid mentioned another, more widespread, issue with Reform candidates’ online presence. In a Good Morning Britain interview with Farage, she said: “You’ve defended 41 [Reform candidates] found to be social media friends of a fascist leader, a former organiser for the British National Party, who founded the new British union in the image of Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists.” Nearly one in 10 Reform candidates standing in England are reportedly “friends” with fascist leader Gary Raikes. Farage initially seemed lost for words, but then said: “I didn’t even know the bloke until last Thursday! “People put stuff on Facebook and they like a comment, they have no idea who …

Keir Starmer Reveals Vision For Day One As Labour Prime Minister

Keir Starmer Reveals Vision For Day One As Labour Prime Minister

Even the Tories are now admitting it. Keir Starmer is going to be the next prime minister, most likely as the head of a government with a huge electoral mandate. In desperation, senior Conservatives are now reduced to begging voters not to hand Labour a “super-majority” on July 4. With more than two weeks still go until polling day, it appears to be a question of how much Labour will win by, rather than whether the party will finally defeat the Tories for the first time in nearly 20 years. Starmer took time out from the campaign trail to tell HuffPost UK about how he intends to change the country from his first day in 10 Downing Street. And to those who remain sceptical about his ability or appetite for the task in hand, the Labour boss pointed to how he has transformed his party since succeeding Jeremy Corbyn in the wake of the 2019 election. “When I became leader, people shook me by the hand to say ‘good luck’ and then in the next …

Keir Starmer Shuts Down Heckler During Manifesto Launch

Keir Starmer Shuts Down Heckler During Manifesto Launch

Keir Starmer declared Labour is now “a party of power” as he unveiled his election manifesto. The Labour leader had to slap down a heckler who accused him of following “Tory policies”. “We gave up being a party of protest five years ago,” Starmer said. “We want to be a party of power. That’s not in the script but that is part of the change.” As expected, the 133-page manifesto contained no new policies as the Labour tries to protect its huge poll lead over the Conservatives with just three weeks to go until polling day on July 4. Are heckler interrupts Keir Starmer’s speach. Keir Starmer: “We gave up on being a party of protest five years ago. We want to be a party of power.” ???? pic.twitter.com/30pK3Ow4Kg — Haggis_UK ???????? ???????? (@Haggis_UK) June 13, 2024 Instead, it contained pre-announced pledges including plans to put VAT on private school fees, extend the windfall tax on oil and gas companies, and reform planning rules to build 1.5 million more homes. Other policies include lowering the …

‘Still a lot of work to be done’ at home and abroad: PM Wong on GE timing

‘Still a lot of work to be done’ at home and abroad: PM Wong on GE timing

OPTIMISTIC IN RESOLVING OUTSTANDING ISSUES Mr Wong said he is optimistic about working with his Malaysian counterpart to settle outstanding bilateral issues, and noted that there are positive areas of cooperation between the two sides, along with new areas that can be identified down the road. During a joint press conference earlier in the day, Malaysian Prime Minister and Finance Minister Anwar Ibrahim had said it would be “marvellous” if issues, such as water, airspace and maritime boundaries, could be resolved by the next Singapore-Malaysia Leaders’ Retreat at the end of this year. Mr Wong told the media that these are longstanding issues, but he nonetheless is approaching the negotiations with good faith and hoping for the best outcomes. “My predecessor Senior Minister Lee (Hsien Loong) had hoped to resolve them before he handed over to me, but it didn’t materialise,” he said. “Still, I think he had a very good leaders’ retreat last year with PM Anwar and they agreed or they discussed how to move forward on each of these issues. There are …

Rishi Sunak Ridiculed Over Comment On Government Spending

Rishi Sunak Ridiculed Over Comment On Government Spending

Rishi Sunak’s latest attempt to post an inspiring message on social media has only triggered a fresh wave of mockery. On Tuesday, the prime minister posted on X (formerly Twitter): “You will always be better at spending your own money than the government is.” While this sentiment seemed to come out of nowhere, it is likely linked to the Tory manifesto which Sunak unveiled hours before. The Conservatives promise voters that if they were re-elected, they would introduce £17billion of tax cuts. You will always be better at spending your own money than the government is. — Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) June 11, 2024 But, this post probably did not land on social media how the prime minister had envisioned it would. Although it was viewed more than six million times in less than 24 hours, a majority of the comments were less than flattering… Most questioned what sort of election campaign strategy this was, and mocked the idea of individuals funding government services. Openly admitting that the government has done, and continues to do, a …

Diane Abbott Confirms She Plans To Run As A Labour Candidate

Diane Abbott Confirms She Plans To Run As A Labour Candidate

Diane Abbott has just confirmed that she intends to run as a Labour candidate at the general election. The veteran MP, first elected in 1987, has been the subject of much speculation in recent weeks over whether or not she would run for Keir Starmer’s party. In a social media post on Sunday, Abbott said: “I intend to run and to win as Labour’s candidate.” While she had the Labour whip returned to her last week – after 13 months of suspension – there were also reports she would be still banned from standing in her constituency of Hackney North and Stoke Newington. This sparked uproar from Abbott’s supporters. At a rally arranged in her honour earlier this week, she told backers that Labour “just want me excluded from parliament”. Starmer initially side-stepped questions about her candidacy. However, when his deputy Angela Rayner said Abbott should be allowed to stand, he U-turned. The Labour leader said the veteran MP was “free” to represent his party at the polls on Friday. Over the weekend, there were …

Rishi Sunak tells fractious Tory MPs to unite to help defeat Labour in general election | Politics | News

Rishi Sunak tells fractious Tory MPs to unite to help defeat Labour in general election | Politics | News

Defiant Rishi Sunak laid down the gauntlet to rebellious MPs to unite over Conservative values as he insisted the result of the general election “isn’t a foregone conclusion”. In a rallying cry to his increasingly fragmented party, the Prime Minister said he is determined to “fight incredibly hard” for every possible vote to defeat Labour. Facing down backbench calls for the Tories to lurch to the right, Mr Sunak said cutting taxes, securing borders and making people safe are values which “unites all Conservatives.” The forthright remarks came as the PM made his first public appearance since a bruising set of local election and mayoral results at the weekend. Since then Mr Sunak has suggested the UK was on course for a hung Parliament. Challenged over the prediction during a visit to a community centre in Islington on Monday, the Prime Minister told broadcasters: “The independent analysis shows that whilst of course this was a disappointing weekend for us, that the result of the next general election isn’t a foregone conclusion and indeed actually is …