Might its days of ‘backing the winner’ be over? One consequence of the phone hacking scandal is that there’s almost no chance of The Sun backing Labour in 2015. Ed Miliband has gone out of his way to pick a fight with the Murdochs and it’s doubtful whether he’d want the endorsement even if it were on the cards, which it surely isn’t. So if it’s The Sun wot wins it then it will back the Tories then? Well yes,…
The former Treasury Secretary, David Laws, who had to quite after only three weeks in June 2010 is predicting that the coalition will run its course to the May 2015 general election. Avvording to a BBC report of a conference speach Laws predicted that the two coalition parties will not formally “disengage” before the next election. “Instead, Conservative leader David Cameron and Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg will “juggle two balls – setting out their own visions of the future…
Could there be be an electoral price for the Osborne proposal ? Six months after the 2010 General Election some of the political scientists involved in the hugely successful accurate exit poll – John Curtice/Stephen Fisher/Rob Ford – produced an analysis of the election which is a must read for all who are focused on what might happen next time. One trend they identified that impeded the Tory drive to a majority was this:- “Constituencies containing a relatively large number…
It’s LAB 42+1/CON 31+1/LD 9nc/UKIP 8-2 There’s a new voting intention poll out from the online firm, Opinium which has Labour maintaining its 12% lead. The firm doesn’t get much prominence but did come up with the closest numbers in last month’s London Mayoral election beating YouGov by 2 points. Ed Miliband still has the best net approval ratings from the firm. He’s -18%, Cameron’s -24% and Clegg -46%. Essentially the picture is the same from just about all the…
Could Cameron be put on the spot about his handling? The hearing stage of the Leveson Inquiry into the media is drawing to a close with the prime minister, David Cameron, being today’s witness. It’s perhaps easy to forget the prime purpose of the Inquiry which is to “make recommendations on the future of press regulation and governance consistent with maintaining freedom of the press and ensuring the highest ethical and professional standards. The process, I’d suggest, has got somewhat…
Ipsos-MORI On voting intentions it’s CON 31%(-2): LAB 40%(-3): LD 10%(+1) While all eyes were focused on Leveson and this afternoon’s commons debate the latest telephone poll from Ipsos-MORI came out and there was bad news for George Osborne who has seen a big decline in his rating as “most capable chancellor”. When the pollster last asked this in March George was on 36% – today that is down at 29%. At the same time the rating for Ed Balls…
Does the PM think he’s on shaky ground? Inevitably on the day of the Labour-instigated on Jeremy Hunt debate Ed Miliband devoted all his six questions at PMQs to the issue that will be voted on later. There was was strange line from Cameron. He claimed in the exchanges that the issue was an “open goal” for Miliband. Does that mean that the PM thinks that he is on shaky ground? It certainly came over like that. For what was…