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Political betting feature in the Financial Times

Political betting feature in the Financial Times

FT REPORT A finger on the political pulse by Ross Tieman, Financial Times – Published: Dec 07, 2007 Mike Smithson is on a roll. Britain’s foremost political spread betting aficionado is profiting from the opportunity bonanza offered by political upsets in the UK and the US presidential race. “It’s been a great autumn,” he says. “I have got a hefty wadge that has been transferred into my bank account. Since October, I have done about £6,000 [of profits].” You can’t…

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The YouGov poll – does it live up to its billing?

The YouGov poll – does it live up to its billing?

Is it as “devastating as we were led to believe? Earlier this evening this appeared on the Daily Telegraph blog – “Tonight’s YouGov poll for the Telegraph is, to quote our polling guru Anthony King, ‘one of the most devastating I’ve ever seen’. That’s quite a verdict from a man who has been looking at these things for four decades.” This set peoples’ imaginations racing especially as the last poll to publish, ComRes on Tuesday, had the Tories 13% ahead…

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Will Labour polling dampen the election speculation?

Will Labour polling dampen the election speculation?

Marginals said to be “patchy and extremely tight” We are going to have to wait until this evening before we see the first post-Blackpool opinion poll and that should be from the YouGov panel on this evening’s Channel 4 News. But according to Steve Richards in the Independent the prospect of an early election has receded following the Tory conference and reaction to Cameron’s speech. He notes that Brown’s “inner circle is understood to have become more cautious about an…

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General election and other site announcements

General election and other site announcements

Bob Worcester: The founder of Mori and one of the most pre-eminent people in the UK polling industry, Sir Robert Worcester will be joining us for an hour or so tomorrow to discuss, amongst other things, the latest Ipsos-Mori poll – due out in the Observer in the morning. I am hoping that Bob’s appearance will start a new feature on PBC when leading figures in the polling industry can talk about how they see things going. Comment publishing arrangements….

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Introducing Politicalbetting “recorded wagers”?

Introducing Politicalbetting “recorded wagers”?

Will Lynne Featherstone hold on in Hornsey? Those who followed yesterday’s thread will have seen a fierce argument between two long-standing contributors, Mark Senior and Gladstone, over whether the Lib Dems will hold onto Hornsey and Wood Green at the next general election. Mark has laid a bet 5/1 on the possibility that the incumbent who took the seat in 2005, Lynne Featherstone, (pictured above promoting a soup kitchen initiative) will fail to hold onto the seat. So if she…

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Hold the date – Monday April 16th

Hold the date – Monday April 16th

Political Betting Book Launch Party Monday 16th April – 4pm to 6pm The Strangers Restaurant, House of Commons And afterwards in St Stephens Tavern, Westminster In partnership with Politico’s Book Shop, Politicalbetting.com is happy to announce the date and venue, as above, of its annual party which this year will be combined with the launch of Mike’s book, The Political Punter, which is being published by Harriman House. The venue is made possible by the sponsorship of our MP contributors,…

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Is Tony still the magic maker?

Is Tony still the magic maker?

Should Gordon be worried about the eulogies to Blair Tucked away in the detail of yesterday’s YouGov poll were the responses to the question “Who would make the best Prime Minister”? When the options were Blair, Cameron and Campbell 79% of Labour voters said Tony with just one per cent naming Cameron But when the same question was asked with Gordon Brown substituted for Tony Blair the proportion of Labour voters going for Brown dropped to 71% with 6% naming…

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Who’ll win the LD race – the debate continues

Who’ll win the LD race – the debate continues

PB.C party-goers discuss the chances Saturday’s second PB.C party attracted 40+ site regulars including Anthony Wells, founder of UK Polling Report, Guido Fawkes and Ian Dale, the owner of Politicos and who served as David Davis’s chief of staff. Clearly the Lib Dem leadership race was a key discussion point with many of the Tories there saying the candidate that they most feared was the former MEP, Nick Clegg, who is not a candidate and has come out strongly for…

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