2015 election
Is nice but dim such a bad thing for Labour?
Labour’s lead in the polls has been pretty steady at around 10 points for a little over a year now. So why does today’s Guardian carry an article with the… Continue reading
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Tory MP suggests Nigel Farage takes Nick Clegg’s place in 2015 debates
Today’s results for UKIP have re-opened the question of whether Nigel Farage should join the three political leaders in the live TV election debates in 2015. David Cameron’s allies are… Continue reading
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‘Would you like to replace Ed Balls?’ The question Alistair Darling won’t answer
Ed Balls is a good street fighter, but not a very loveable one. The polls suggest he is perhaps the least popular figure in frontline politics. His manner too abrasive… Continue reading
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Lord Ashcroft’s message to the Tories: you’re doomed in 2015
I’m at the ConservativeHome ‘Victory 2015′ conference today, which after Lord Ashcroft’s presentation should perhaps be renamed Annihilation 2015. He started the day with one of his mega expensive polls… Continue reading
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Can’t we even throw out Lynne Featherstone?
I gave a talk to the Hornsey and Wood Green Labour Party last night. If you don’t know the area, the constituency covers Highgate, Muswell Hill and Crouch End: leafy… Continue reading
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Mid-term review: A return to the rose garden?
‘David Cameron and Nick Clegg get coalition better than anyone else in the government’ one Downing Street aide remarked to me recently, and watching the two men at today’s press… Continue reading
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Shapps’ campaign skirmish
There’s long been a sense on the Tory side that the party’s campaigning isn’t as sharp as it should be, that CCHQ isn’t up to the job. The Ashcroft target… Continue reading
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George Osborne hires head of leading centre-right think tank to push through new Tory agenda
George Osborne has recruited Neil O’Brien, the director of the leading centre-right think tank Policy Exchange, as an adviser. O’Brien will start work in the New Year with a particular… Continue reading
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The Lib Dems’ future may not be so bleak
At last week’s Corby by-election, the Liberal Democrat candidate requested two recounts. Once a formidable by-election machine, the Lib Dems were reduced to searching in vain for the 14 extra… Continue reading
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Guto’s Revenge
Look out for Mr Steerpike in this week’s Spectator magazine, but here’s a taster of what’s coming up: ‘Lynton Crosby’s swear-box is filling up. The Aussie strategist may have guided… Continue reading
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How Lynton Crosby could save the Tories in 2015
Over the summer, the balance of probability nudged away from a Cameron win towards a Miliband win in 2015. The collapse of the boundary review deal lifted the bar for… Continue reading
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Grant Shapps confirms that 20 of the 40 Tory target seats are Lib Dem held
On the Sunday Politics just now, Grant Shapps confirmed to Andrew Neil The Spectator’s story that 20 of the 40 Tory target seats at the next election are Liberal Democrat… Continue reading
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Another sign that CCHQ is moving on to an election footing
Today brings yet another sign that CCHQ is gearing up for the long election campaign. After yesterday’s news that the party has chosen the forty seats it intends to target… Continue reading
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Polls suggest Boris as leader could be worth an extra 50 Tory MPs
In their first poll conducted fully after all the party conferences, YouGov once again tested what difference replacing David Cameron with Boris Johnson would have on the Conservatives’ poll rating.… Continue reading
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Never mind about David, we need to talk about George
It’s a familiar theme: the Tory conference is approaching, David Cameron is in trouble and knives are coming out for him. But how much of the problems are of his… Continue reading
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