ENGLAND, mate, is heading to the polls today for some local and mayoral elections happening mostly in the south and Midlands of the country. It’s a big day for democracy, innit?
In addition to these elections, there’s a Westminster by-election going down in Runcorn and Helsby. This by-election was called after the sitting Labour MP Mike Amesbury decided to resign as an MP due to a conviction for assault. The bloke got sentenced to 10 weeks in prison, but he managed to get it suspended for two years on appeal. Talk about a close call!
Now, at the last year’s Westminster General Election, Amesbury managed to bag the seat with 52.9% of the vote, leaving the Reform UK candidate in the dust with just 18.1% of the vote. The Conservatives didn’t fare much better, coming in a sad third place.
However, the Nigel Farage fan club is feeling pretty confident about their chances of causing an upset and stealing the seat from Labour. Polls are showing that Labour and Reform UK are neck and neck, so it could go either way. Even if Labour does manage to hold on to the seat, it’s not gonna be much of a win for them.
In normal circumstances, Labour should have no trouble holding onto this seat. It’s supposed to be one of their safest, after all. But word on the street is that Labour’s strategists are bracing themselves for a loss. They’ve been taking a hit in popularity ever since they won big in the last General Election. Turns out, their victory wasn’t all it was cracked up to be, only getting 33.7% of the popular vote. Ouch.
Seems like Prime Minister Keir Starmer is so unpopular that he couldn’t even be bothered to hit the campaign trail with Labour candidate Karen Shore. This makes him the first leader in almost two decades not to bother campaigning in their party’s first defensive by-election after a national vote. Tough break, mate.
The Tories are the ones feeling the heat from Reform the most. There’s a real chance that come Friday morning, we’ll wake up to find another Westminster seat and several English local authorities and mayoralties have fallen into the hands of Donald Trump’s English mini-mes. Nigel Farage will be over the moon, thinking he’s on track to become the next Prime Minister. The pressure will be on the Tories to either make a deal with Reform or shift even further to the right.
As if that wasn’t enough drama, it turns out that Donald Trump has been trying to strong-arm the British Government into helping him secure the golf Open Championship for his Turnberry course. Experts in the USA are warning that this could be a breach of the American constitution, but we all know Trump doesn’t give a toss about that.
According to reports from The Guardian, Trump has been banging on about holding the Open at Turnberry during his chats with Keir Starmer. It’s been years since the Open was held at Turnberry, and there are concerns about access and facilities at the course. But Trump is determined to make it happen, even if it means the British Government has to fork out some cash.
All in all, it’s a messy situation. Trump’s not bothered about ethics, and it looks like Keir Starmer and the British Government are willing to bend over backwards to keep him happy. Who knows what’s next? Maybe Starmer will declare Trump as the next Pope!
And just when you thought things couldn’t get any crazier, Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay is causing a ruckus in Holyrood. He’s been disrespectful to Scottish Green MSPs during FMQs, getting told off four times by Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone. Findlay needs to take a chill pill, especially with Reform UK breathing down their necks.
It’s all kicking off in the world of politics, mate. Who knows what’s gonna happen next? Just gotta sit back, grab some popcorn, and enjoy the show.
