Early election rumours are again rippling through Westminster. The truth is, of course, that no general election can be called during recess without a recall of parliament. There is no motivation for the prime minister to take such a step, not while the novelty of that title still chirrups in Boris Johnson’s own ears and tolls in those of his foes. But after recess, all bets are off. Johnson’s announcement on Sunday of a £1.8bn cash bonus for the NHS was a pre-election cookie if ever we saw one.
Take your pick of the Merovingian mechanics by which we get there – a no-confidence vote, parliament blocking no deal – an election is coming. Yet for at least 20 moderate Labour MPs, and a fair few Tory ones, an internal struggle is being fought: can they knock on doors and honestly ask voters to endorse the leader of their own party? The idea of a choice between Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn fills many voters with horror. But more importantly, it fills the parties’ own MPs with dread too.
Rumours have circulated for some time now of alternative new parties, of moderate electoral pacts. Every week, it seems, a chunk of the Labour parliamentary party change their minds about how they’re going to avoid campaigning for Corbyn at the next election. From now until the Labour party conference, they will distractedly expend their energies avoiding deselection. They are wasting their efforts. And they are wasting the country’s time. The window to jump ship – whether to the resurgent Liberal Democrats, to a new centre party, or to some electoral combination of the two – is closing rapidly.
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See Also:
(1) Neil Down
(2) Brexit Party coup: Grandson of British icon set to be unveiled as MP hopeful in huge boost
(3) Boris Johnson has no intention of renegotiating Brexit deal, EU told
(4) EU faces reality: Brussels admits ‘no alternative’ to No Deal – nations get 48hrs for plan
(5) Merkel’s crisis: Germany slips into economic meltdown as US-China trade war escalates
