Labour did better than expected at the previous general election for two reasons.John Upham wrote: ↑Fri Dec 13, 2019 7:17 pmThis might be controversial but...
Had all the English parties been openly Pro-Brexit (and, for the record, I'm not) then I wonder what would have been the outcome of the General Election ?
I think I am asking what would have been the outcome had Brexit not been merged in with the General Election ?
1. Theresa May was a poor leader and Jeremy Corbyn outshone her
2. John McDonnell wrote an excellent manifesto and the idea that it was fully costed assuaged ‘moderates’ fears
Things have reversed this election
1. Jeremy Corbyn looks old and Boris Johnson appears to have much more energy
2. Labour has made far too many spending pledges to retain financial credibility
That has nothing to do with Brexit, so I suspect had Brexit not been an issue the result would have been broadly similar.
The surprise for me was the poor showing of the Liberal Democrats. In my view they made two big mistakes
1. They elected the wrong leader
2. Their Brexit policy failed to resonate and they should have stuck with a second vote rather than revocation
(In fairness, I am only making the second point with the benefit of hindsight)