Tories To Capture Saint Tony's Old Seat......

[ToraToraTora]

http://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/807203/Tony-Blair-general-election-seat-Sedgefield-win-Conservative
If Safe Labour seats are threatened are we looking at a massacre?

[Old_Geezer]

Well they had a right of centre candidate in the days of Blair, why not again ? Must be a possibility.

[ToraToraTora]

yes Tony was basically a Tory so I can see what you mean OG

[lindapalmara]

If Bliar goes up to help the campaign for Labour it'll be a deflate Tory win!

[hellywelly4]

Blair and Mandelson manipulated the public into voting for Labour. When they got in I couldn't believe how like the Conservatives they were.

[New Judge]

And now there is a distinct danger that may happen the other way round.

[Garaman]

Yes, NJ, as one who is to the left of the right, I do wonder if she is actually quite a way to the left of me. Tom Peck's article is interesting.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/conservative-general-election-manifesto-2017-theresa-may-general-election-forward-together-fidel-a7743616.html

[Kromovaracun]

God I misread this question to start with.

I thought it said "ToraToraTora to Capture St. Tony's Old Seat"...

Imagine my relief!

[youngmafbog]

Well maybe not.

Labour are now literally buying votes, this mornings announcement on the cancelling of tuition fees immediately shows this.

If there re enough people gullible enough not to ask the question 'where is all the money coming from?' (and I suspect there are especially in the young voters) then labour could still win. TM's attack on the 'rich' sick whilst at the same time refusing to pledge to reduce foreign aid will cost her dearly. Add this to the fact TM seems to becoming more left wing than some of the labour party and I would say it is now an open race.

[naomi24]

//I would say it is now an open race. //

I wouldn't.

[jim360]

Well at the very least we could say that things are moving to make the race less one-sided. The current state of play is that Labour might be able to hold on to, say, 90%+ of their seats as opposed to looking at losing (more than) a quarter of them. I don't think that makes things open. But a month ago the Tories had a 20+ point lead in every poll; now that lead is hovering around half that size. If it keeps moving that way... well, it's a big if, and polls tend to be generous to Labour anyway (I don't know if the reported central values have been changed a little in light of 2015's miss).

I can't see Labour winning. They have too much ground to make up. But maybe the scale of their defeat will be less severe than expected.

[ichkeria]

The 'Coalition of Chaos' letters will start going out soon, as happened last time. All funded by Tory central office to get round the constituency expenses ceiling.

[youngmafbog]

Never say never jim, and given the recent history of polls anything can happen.

I think TM has been behaving complacently. She is taking a big risk when she did not need to. She could easily have said 'it will be reviewed' for both the tax the sick saver and foreign aid issues could have been avoided.

[youngmafbog]

And the other parties dont do similar Ick?

[dannyk13]

Obviously the bookies still think that Mrs May will win easily.
https://www.oddschecker.com/politics/british-politics/next-uk-general-election/most-seats

[ichkeria]

All parties do weird things at election time ymb. I am merely pointing out this particular tactic, which was mighty successful last time out.

[dannyk13]

// She could easily have said 'it will be reviewed' for both the tax the sick saver and foreign aid issues could have been avoided//
Boris Johnson, interviewed yesterday said "There will be consultation before anything is decided"

[youngmafbog]

1) Boris is not TM.
2) The damage is done.

[dannyk13]

Not too much damage according to the bookies.

[Zacs-Master]

'Damage' ?

[jim360]

Such damage as there has been is probably limited to the difference between a 100-seat majority and an 80-seat one, or something like that. The Tories have a lot of margin for error at the moment. Or, at least, they've had that margin so far.