‘The tectonic plates of British politics are shifting beneath Boris Johnson’s feet. And now it’s time for Conservative MPs to plunge him into the abyss’…reports Asian Lite News
Opposition Labour party is gearing up to face the 2024 general election as Labour taken three symbolic London councils from the Conservatives.
Westminster had been controlled by the Tories since 1964; Wandsworth since 1978; and Labour have won Barnet for the first time
Labour leader Keir Starmer hails a “big turning point” for his party. The Liberal Democrats have gained a net 58 council seats so far – the most of any party – and the Greens are also doing well. Counting has begun in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
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Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper welcomes the results,
“We do see this as a turning point for Labour because particularly since the 2019 election we’ve had a real rebuilding of support right across the country in different areas,” she said.
She also claims if Labour’s vote share were to be replicated in the next general election it would win dozens of constituencies back from the Conservatives.
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey has described the local election results as “an almighty shockwave that will bring this Conservative Government tumbling down”.
Ed Davey made the comments at a victory rally in the ultra-marginal constituency of Wimbledon, where the party has gained 12 seats in the Merton Borough elections.
The Liberal Democrats have also gained ground in Cheadle (Stockport), Witney (West Oxfordshire) and Eastleigh – all seats where the party is in a strong second place to the Conservatives. The Liberal Democrats have won control of Hull City Council from Labour, as well as gaining a further nine seats in Richmond-upon-Thames, where they took control from the Conservatives in 2018.
Ed Davey said the results show people “have had enough of being ignored and taken for granted by this Conservative Government.”
He said the Liberal Democrats are winning “because we are listening to people, because we are standing up for our communities and fighting for a fair deal.”
“What began as a tremor in Chesham and Amersham, became an earthquake in North Shropshire, and is now an almighty shockwave that will bring this Conservative Government tumbling down,” said Ed Davey. “It is the movement of millions of people who are saying loud and clear: We have had enough. Enough of seeing our energy bills go up, our tax bills go up, and our standard of living go down.
“The tectonic plates of British politics are shifting beneath Boris Johnson’s feet. And now it’s time for Conservative MPs to plunge him into the abyss. So our message to Conservative MPs here in Wimbledon and across the Blue Wall is this: If you don’t get rid of Boris Johnson. If you don’t give struggling families and pensioners more help with the cost-of-living crisis If you don’t start listening to people and stop taking them for granted.”
Labour’s national campaign co-ordinator Shabana Mahmood says the party has “much more work to do” to be back on track for a win at the next general election but she is positive about what she has seen so far at the counts.
Shabana tells Today’s programme that Labour “always had a mountain to climb” after their 2019 general election losses but says: “What the early results are showing… is we have made huge progress on that 2019 election result and on the results we saw last year.”
Shabana says the aggregate vote share shows Labour would win seats in the “Red Wall” area if these votes were translated to a general election, taking places like Workington, Grimsby, Leeds and West Bromwich.
“So we have a solid foundation to build on as we look ahead to the next general election,” she says.
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