When the Conservative Party converges on Birmingham this weekend for its annual get together, it is likely to have the feel of a funeral rather than a celebration.
Rarely, if indeed ever, has there been such a steady drumbeat of self-inflicted bad news in the lead up to the Tory annual conference, and that is taking into account the past few years of rolling crises and scandals.
Thursday’s YouGov poll handing Labour a staggering 33 point lead should be looked at as a snapshot of the political landscape, not a prediction, but there is little doubt there is no upside for the Tories. Even an aggregate of all polling shows the party to be 13 points behind Labour.
It is barely believable that Liz Truss has only been in power for 25 days. What was meant to be a victory tour in Birmingham and an opportunity to burnish her credentials to the party faithful and the wider public has swiftly become crisis management and damage limitation.
The Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party will arrive at party conference in the knowledge that at least half of her MPs present – if they have bothered to attend – never supported her with several already plotting to have her removed.
Such is the gloom within the party that Tory grandee Sir Charles Walker has claimed that the party should give up even contemplating winning the next election and just focus on trying to put the country back on a decent footing.
Speaking to Times Radio, the senior backbencher said it was not so much a question of winning an election, but “how much do we lose it by”. He added: “Our first duty is not to get re-elected, our first duty is to the country.”
Ms Truss now faces the almost incomprehensible situation of letters of no confidence being submitted by her fellow MPs, who fear a total wipeout at the next election under her leadership.
The new PM is left with the choice of pressing on with her growth plan or embarking on a hugely damaging, possibly career ending, U-turn. If she decides to do the former it will mean her doubling down on her plans for tax cuts for the wealthiest and removal of the banker bonuses cap, plus introducing sweeping reforms to planning, immigration, business regulation, childcare and agriculture.
Each of these would be difficult to push through even with a strong political wind on your side, but Ms Truss is going to try and convince her party and the British public that she is to be trusted introducing major supply-side reforms with some of the worst political headwinds in recent history.
Her and her Chancellor’s ability to overshadow the hugely popular energy bill rescue package, worth tens of billions of pounds, with tax cuts for the rich and economic turmoil, suggests Ms Truss will struggle to sell her further reforms adequately.
Friday’s meeting with the Office of Budget Responsibility has done little to quell market jitters, as both she and Kwasi Kwarteng remain steadfast in their decision to only publish a forecast on 23 November. Whether the markets, and indeed her own MPs, are willing to wait that long seems questionable.
Ms Truss insisted while in New York that she was willing to be unpopular to get the economy growing. She should be left in very little doubt what that now means. Her battle to regain what she has lost begins in Birmingham. It means her speech on Wednesday will be one of the most important of her career to date.
She better hope not or she’s fooked!
The sad thing is it was always going to be this bad. There’s a reason they never let her speak. Her performances in the commons were cringe. Now folk are watching.
I would go up there and just play to the flag wavers. Say you want to remember the queen and read that excerpt from the funeral…and get out of there quick!
Birmingham is quite easy to travel to. I’m guessing there will be some large protests going on, unless she’s cancelled all the trains and busses, suspended every parking space and rented every piece of fencing in the West Midlands
With her charisma, timing and persona, Im sure it’ll be as inspiring as Churchill^the^dog and Henry^mk^V vacuum cleaner.
Ohhhhhh Yesssssss
The fact that after this week she’s still got at least one chance, even if it is a last one, should really remind people the entire party is a shitshow, not just Truss and Kwarteng.
WEF plants are incompetent at best, actively malicious to their host nation at worst. Who’d have thought?
It’s going to be a bloodbath. This couldn’t possibly have gone worse for her.
I don’t buy it. They ain’t gonna get rid of her, there’s no one else and they won’t want another leadership contest so soon.
She needs to remain in office until January 29th 2023, lest she become the PM with the shortest tenure (excluding Canning who died in office)
10 comments
When the Conservative Party converges on Birmingham this weekend for its annual get together, it is likely to have the feel of a funeral rather than a celebration.
Rarely, if indeed ever, has there been such a steady drumbeat of self-inflicted bad news in the lead up to the Tory annual conference, and that is taking into account the past few years of rolling crises and scandals.
Thursday’s YouGov poll handing Labour a staggering 33 point lead should be looked at as a snapshot of the political landscape, not a prediction, but there is little doubt there is no upside for the Tories. Even an aggregate of all polling shows the party to be 13 points behind Labour.
It is barely believable that Liz Truss has only been in power for 25 days. What was meant to be a victory tour in Birmingham and an opportunity to burnish her credentials to the party faithful and the wider public has swiftly become crisis management and damage limitation.
The Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party will arrive at party conference in the knowledge that at least half of her MPs present – if they have bothered to attend – never supported her with several already plotting to have her removed.
Such is the gloom within the party that Tory grandee Sir Charles Walker has claimed that the party should give up even contemplating winning the next election and just focus on trying to put the country back on a decent footing.
Speaking to Times Radio, the senior backbencher said it was not so much a question of winning an election, but “how much do we lose it by”. He added: “Our first duty is not to get re-elected, our first duty is to the country.”
Ms Truss now faces the almost incomprehensible situation of letters of no confidence being submitted by her fellow MPs, who fear a total wipeout at the next election under her leadership.
The new PM is left with the choice of pressing on with her growth plan or embarking on a hugely damaging, possibly career ending, U-turn. If she decides to do the former it will mean her doubling down on her plans for tax cuts for the wealthiest and removal of the banker bonuses cap, plus introducing sweeping reforms to planning, immigration, business regulation, childcare and agriculture.
Each of these would be difficult to push through even with a strong political wind on your side, but Ms Truss is going to try and convince her party and the British public that she is to be trusted introducing major supply-side reforms with some of the worst political headwinds in recent history.
Her and her Chancellor’s ability to overshadow the hugely popular energy bill rescue package, worth tens of billions of pounds, with tax cuts for the rich and economic turmoil, suggests Ms Truss will struggle to sell her further reforms adequately.
Friday’s meeting with the Office of Budget Responsibility has done little to quell market jitters, as both she and Kwasi Kwarteng remain steadfast in their decision to only publish a forecast on 23 November. Whether the markets, and indeed her own MPs, are willing to wait that long seems questionable.
Ms Truss insisted while in New York that she was willing to be unpopular to get the economy growing. She should be left in very little doubt what that now means. Her battle to regain what she has lost begins in Birmingham. It means her speech on Wednesday will be one of the most important of her career to date.
She better hope not or she’s fooked!
The sad thing is it was always going to be this bad. There’s a reason they never let her speak. Her performances in the commons were cringe. Now folk are watching.
I would go up there and just play to the flag wavers. Say you want to remember the queen and read that excerpt from the funeral…and get out of there quick!
Birmingham is quite easy to travel to. I’m guessing there will be some large protests going on, unless she’s cancelled all the trains and busses, suspended every parking space and rented every piece of fencing in the West Midlands
>[Freedom begins with Tax Cuts](https://m.thepaperboy.com/frontpages_archive/Daily_Mail_21_9_2022_400.jpg)
UK right wing media look like they’re loving the Conservative Party policies
[The Tories are doing the UK proud! ](https://m.thepaperboy.com/frontpages_archive/Daily_Mail_24_9_2022_400.jpg)
Cant wait for her speech.
With her charisma, timing and persona, Im sure it’ll be as inspiring as Churchill^the^dog and Henry^mk^V vacuum cleaner.
Ohhhhhh Yesssssss
The fact that after this week she’s still got at least one chance, even if it is a last one, should really remind people the entire party is a shitshow, not just Truss and Kwarteng.
WEF plants are incompetent at best, actively malicious to their host nation at worst. Who’d have thought?
It’s going to be a bloodbath. This couldn’t possibly have gone worse for her.
I don’t buy it. They ain’t gonna get rid of her, there’s no one else and they won’t want another leadership contest so soon.
She needs to remain in office until January 29th 2023, lest she become the PM with the shortest tenure (excluding Canning who died in office)