While the would-be Brutuses in the Conservative Party prepare for the Conservative Party leadership race which is supposed to be wrapped up in one week, an election poll gave the Tories an unprecedented 14%, if the election were held tomorrow. By contrast, the same Westminster Intention Voting Poll revealed that the Labour Party would receive 53%. That would put the Tories among the “also ran” parties. The Liberal Democrats would receive 11%, the Greens 6% and the Scottish National Party 5%.
The Spectator reports that some observers predict the Tories could lose 300 seats and win only 20!
Ruth Gregory, senior U.K. economist at Capital Economics, told the Guardian that the next Tory prime minister will have to deal with navigating the “economy through the cost of living crisis, cost of borrowing crisis and the cost of credibility crisis….”
While there are louder voices calling for a general election, which the Labour Party would obviously win, the would-be successors to Liz Truss are preparing their runs for leadership. Although none has made an official announcement, the names include former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, who are front runners, according to the oddsmakers, while Penny Mordaunt comes in a more distant third place. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, who did not have much of a chance to gather the support of 100 Tory MPs needed to qualify, has ruled himself out, saying he wants to stay as Defense Secretary. New Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt has ruled himself out.
