No pictures today. The blog is being written on a ship, mid-Atlantic…
But with access to all the usual news channels it is easy to track the UK’s local election results. And, well, no surprises really. All the parties mostly did as expected. Confirmation of a wholly fractured electoral landscape was made clear.
First, Reform. With c25% of the vote their success is of course a reflection of voter disillusionment with established parties. They are now in the driving seat to run a swathe of councils. Their record to date has often been chaotic although making little fundamental difference to any council’s activities. Only time will tell if they are able to survive voter scrutiny. We will hear far more from Farage in the coming months but he has one major problem. He and his party are loathed by three quarters of the public and this isn’t going to change between now and the General Election.
For the other parties, ex Labour, the Tories’ electoral irrelevance was confirmed. The disappointing performance of the LibDems highlighted for anybody taking notice. The Greens and SNP did well but fell short of the more optimistic expectations. Plaid Cymru saw off Reform in Wales. Good for them. Remember, at one stage, Reform was expected to come top.
That only leaves Labour… umm…
The elections were a disaster for the government. The sheer unpopularity of Starmer and his ineffectual administration stripped Labour bare.
The path to recovery, however, is really quite simple. Lay out a clear policy plan and deliver. Is Starmer the man to do this? Almost certainly not, as shown by the bizarre appointments of Gordon Brown and Harriet Harman to vague government roles. But, there is no alternative amongst his colleagues. They are mostly all tainted, more left-wing or useless. Often all three and that includes Andy Burnham. Oh dear indeed…
Populists thrive when moderates fail. Speak to the Democrats about Trump is one glaring example. So, in this respect, it was a good night for Reform. There is currently no alternative to the current mob in power including Starmer and Reform can afford to sit it out, basking in the electoral sunlight.
Starmer is likely to be safe for now. Changing prime ministers every five minutes doesn’t work. Keep Calm and Carry On or to put it another way, wait for something to turn up is probably the only option. What a choice… We are three years from a General Election. After the past week it suddenly feels just around the corner…
Inside Right Politics 