Current Affairs The Labour Party

[dannyboy]

Give it 2 years and let's see the lay of the land once the vaccine bump is gone and once the real fallout from covid and Brexit hits

Are we really going to wait until then? I think we are looking at the Pasokification of the Labour Party. They're finding it impossible to sell their vision simply because there isn't one.

Today should be the confirmation that Labour's performance in the so called red wall was mostly due to Brexit. It makes it even more startling that Labour elected someone as leader who was the architect of that policy.

Possibly even worse for Starmer and Labour is the fact I can see young people deserting the party too. Mandelson was completely wrong when he said these demographics had nowhere else to go.

 

[dannyboy]

Wow. That's one hell of a beating.

 

[kenada_blue]

Give it 2 years and let's see the lay of the land once the vaccine bump is gone and once the real fallout from covid and Brexit hits

How many excuses for an abject party completely detached from its core voter base? It's been like this since Gordon Brown was turfed out

Tories have been at the bottom of the barrel at times without any strong opposition for over a decade now.

They're almost untouchable

 

[NorthernBlue]

Yet among working age people Labour remained more popular than the Tories even at the last election...

Older voters who are home owners have flocked to the Tories whereas younger voters who aren't and often find themselves in insecure work have not. These are the battle lines upon which UK politics is now drawn.

The problem for Labour is that elements of both of these groups made up what was once its core vote but Starmer has done nothing to address the issue. In fact, he's probably managed to alienate voters on both sides of the demographic.

Just need to wait for all the 50 year old plus gammon heads to die off basically

 

[dannyboy]

How many excuses for an abject party completely detached from its core voter base? It's been like this since Gordon Brown was turfed out

Tories have been at the bottom of the barrel at times without any strong opposition for over a decade now.

They're almost untouchable

The only time the Tories were threatened was when that socialist fella was in charge but apparently the British public only wants 'centrism'.

 

[kenada_blue]

The only time the Tories were threatened was when that socialist fella was in charge but apparently the British public only wants 'centrism'.

That was idealism from the hardcore left and proved its not enough to win an election.

It was worth a punt but wasnt aggressive enough when needed, not flexible in targeting demographics it needed, and also pie in the sky in with a lot of its policies no one bought.

 

[dannyboy]

That was idealism from the hardcore left and proved its not enough to win an election.

It was worth a punt but wasnt aggressive enough when needed, not flexible in targeting demographics it needed, and also pie in the sky in with a lot of its policies no one bought.

I think it's clear from today's result that the main thing people weren't buying was a 2nd referendum on Brexit.

 

[tsubaki]

How many excuses for an abject party completely detached from its core voter base? It's been like this since Gordon Brown was turfed out

Tories have been at the bottom of the barrel at times without any strong opposition for over a decade now.

They're almost untouchable

TBF it dates back far longer than that, that safe seats were taken for granted and given to the bright young things of the party.

 

[Eggs]

Are we really going to wait until then? I think we are looking at the Pasokification of the Labour Party. They're finding it impossible to sell their vision simply because there isn't one.

Today should be the confirmation that Labour's performance in the so called red wall was mostly due to Brexit. It makes it even more startling that Labour elected someone as leader who was the architect of that policy.

Possibly even worse for Starmer and Labour is the fact I can see young people deserting the party too. Mandelson was completely wrong when he said these demographics had nowhere else to go.

....I also think personality counts for a lot, particularly in respect of the leader.

Surprising as it might be, voters appear to resonate with Boris Johnson. It says lots when a barman in Hartlepool says; “I like Boris, he’s just a normal bloke like us”.

Starmer might have a mountain to climb turning the Corbyn era around but he’s a grey character. I fear Labour set itself back massively when the likes of Andy Burnham & David Milliband felt it necessary to leave the Labour Westminister bubble.

 

[tsubaki]

....I also think personality counts for a lot, particularly in respect of the leader.

Surprising as it might be, voters appear to resonate with Boris Johnson. It says lots when a barman in Hartlepool says; “I like Boris, he’s just a normal bloke like us”.

Starmer might have a mountain to climb turning the Corbyn era around but he’s a grey character. I fear Labour set itself back massively when the likes of Andy Burnham & David Milliband felt it necessary to leave the Labour Westminister bubble.

TBF the only thing that (the barman) bit should tell you is how powerful the media are at shaping perceptions.

Johnson isn’t like anyone; indeed even calling him “Boris” is a created thing. Yet people up and down the land parrot that even though it’s manifestly not true that they are like an Eton-educated, long-time Islington resident journalist and politician.

 

[arminisgod]

TBF the only thing that (the barman) bit should tell you is how powerful the media are at shaping perceptions.

Johnson isn’t like anyone; indeed even calling him “Boris” is a created thing. Yet people up and down the land parrot that even though it’s manifestly not true that they are like an Eton-educated, long-time Islington resident journalist and politician.

Stop blaming the media for everything. People can make an opinion on somebody on their own.

Whether u like it or not Boris is very likeable and comes across as a normal bloke.

 

[tsubaki]

Stop blaming the media for everything. People can make an opinion on somebody on their own.

Whether u like it or not Boris is very likeable and comes across as a normal bloke.

lol

exhibit a speaks

 

[grandjoeblue]

TBF it dates back far longer than that, that safe seats were taken for granted and given to the bright young things of the party.

All parties probably do this but I agree that its an issue. Even quite a few of the Merseyside seats have out of town MPs brought in.

A lot of these towns have voted for Labour for decades with very little improvement to their lives. The media campaign to view labour as a party of London centric middle class seems to have worked. A lot of these people seem to think brexit will still improve their lives which will still have an impact on votes.

It's going to be a hard road back for Labour, I just can't see how they coud manage to win a majority any time soon.

 

[evilwebby]

Starmer was the best of a bad bunch, but it’s clear to me that while the public generally had a positive image of him, there were keeping both him and the whole PLP on a very short leash and not prepared to tolerate any sort of nonsense...

which then I think we’ve had an inkling of by Labour pursuing this flat refurbishment thing so doggedly. I mean, the public at this stage just don’t care, and it gives the impression that Labour are still trying to win the petty little points while completely missing the big picture. It’s done far more damage to Labour’s image than it has to Johnson’s.

Look, Labour suffered a defeat on a existential threatening scale 18 months ago. The idea that any party can quickly return from the abyss is unrealistic- it takes time even if you do everything right. I think what we saw in he polls over the last year was the public handing Labour an olive branch and telling them that they aren’t finished if they can get their house in order and make the reforms necessary to become a credible alternative government, and also saying to the Conservatives that while we may have entrusted you to deliver on the promises, don’t take this for granted and take our support for granted.

But at the end of the day voters aren’t stupid. They know there is a big difference between the answers they will give to polling companies and how they would actually vote if there were a real election, which is why no one would really have taken Labour’s recent poll lead too seriously.

 

[Charro]

Stop blaming the media for everything. People can make an opinion on somebody on their own.

Whether u like it or not Boris is very likeable and comes across as a normal bloke.

You’ve just proved the point.

He’s a man from extreme privilege yet he’s been portrayed as a normal, relatable bloke by the press.