It was always going to be a difficult decision, when does a Prime Minister at the end of his or her term call a general election. Already the soothsayers are out in force predicting not just a complete wipe-out for the Conservative Party but have likened it to an extinction level event that will reduce the number of seats they hold in parliament to that of a minor party, without even sufficient seats to form the official opposition.
When the “Sunak / Hunt” team took over from “Truss / Kwarteng”, there was a sigh of relief. Here we had a ex – Chancellor who had warned about the folly of ignoring treasury orthodoxy and the volatility of markets. “What i will not do is pursue policies that risk making inflation far worse and last for far longer, especially if those policies amount to borrowing £50 million pounds and putting it on the countries credit card and asking our kids and grandkids to pick up the tab coz that’s not right, it’s not responsible and it’s certainly not conservative”, was the speech he gave which probably cost him in the leadership race the first time round. But he answered the call to lead his party, steady the ship, reduce inflation, stop the boats with his Rwanda scheme, all which led seemingly to a sense of stability and calm.
A week in politics is a long time it would seem as now if the polls are to be believed, Rishi is fighting not just for his premiership but for continued leadership of his party post-election and will need to make the kind of comeback not seen since Lazarus if he is going to save the Tories from political oblivion.
Strangely enough the Labour opposition are not without their own woe’s. After throwing Diane Abbot under a bus for a poorly worded article she wrote on racism, then forcing her to make a grovelling apology and finally suspending her from the party, Keir Starmer himself had to concede that she would be re-admitted into the party and will stand in the general election for her constituency. Even more worryingly, after two live debates on tv Sir Keir still seems unable to tell us exactly how the money needed for 6000 new teachers, 13000 extra Police / community officers and repairing all the pot holes on Britains streets will be raised. Neither has the question been properly put, and the Tories are probably at fault for not doing so, after costing the tax payers billions of pounds and not coming online until 2030, when exactly will Great British energy give a return to the tax payers? What is the anticipated timescale in setting up a new boarder security command with counter terrorism style powers, hire investigators, intelligence operatives (Mi5) and cross boarder Police officers? What will Labour do with the boatloads that will arrive by then?
In the run up to a general election no party that is serious about entering number 10 should be vague in regard to questions arising from it’s manifesto pledges, unclear as to how taxes will be raised or refusing to give details on policies. The government of the day should be judged not only on its record but its ability to find solutions for the big issues that dominate the socio-economic and political sphere impacting the lives of ordinary working people.
A Black Perspective 