British election campaign kicks off on no-Brexit day

By Elizabeth Piper and William James

 

A pro-Brexit supporter reacts in front of a screen advertising the Leader of Britain's Liberal Democrats Jo Swinson for the general election, near the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain October 31, 2019. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

 

LONDON (Reuters) - On the day Britain was supposed to have left the European Union, voters instead faced the start of an election campaign, with opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn pledging to overthrow a "rigged system" he said was run by billionaires and tax dodgers.

 

After failing to deliver Brexit by the Oct. 31 deadline, Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the Dec. 12 election to break what he cast as a political paralysis that had thwarted Britain's departure and undermined confidence in the economy.

 

Opinion polls suggest the election is Johnson's to lose. His Conservative Party is leading Labour by 15 to 17 percentage points, according to IpsosMORI and YouGov. Yet the overshadowing issue of Brexit, which has divided both major parties and their voters, could confound conventional calculations.

 

While Brexit frames the election, with Labour pledging to hold a second referendum on it, it is being fought by two of the most unconventional British politicians of recent years who offer starkly different visions for the world's fifth-largest economy.

 

In his first major speech of the campaign, Corbyn said the election was a once-in-a-generation chance to overthrow what he cast as a corrupt elite which profited by exploiting workers, lying to the public and polluting the environment.

 

"Together, we can pull down a corrupt system and build a fairer country that cares for all," said Corbyn, a 70-year-old veteran socialist campaigner.

 

"Even if the rivers freeze over, we're going out to bring about real change for the many, not the few," Corbyn said.

 

Corbyn named prominent billionaires such as landowner Hugh Grosvenor, Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley, Ineos CEO Jim Ratcliffe, hedge fund manager Crispin Odey and U.S. media tycoon Rupert Murdoch as representatives of Britain's "rigged system".

 

He proposed nationalisation of rail, mail and water services and higher taxes on the bankers who have made London the pre-eminent international financial capital.

 

Ashley, one of the businessmen targeted by Corbyn, hit back, saying the Labour leader was "not only a liar but clueless."

 

HEALTH NOT BREXIT?

 

The first December election in Britain since 1923 will be one of the hardest to forecast in years. Brexit has variously fatigued, enthused and enraged voters while eroding loyalties to the two major parties.

 

IpsosMORI said the Conservatives were on 41% with Labour on 24%. But that still leaves a third of the electorate up for grabs - and voter poaching could decide the final result.

 

The Liberal Democrats want to win over the opponents of Brexit while the Brexit Party is courting supporters of the divorce. The Brexit Party is expected to set out some of its strategy on Friday.

 

A five-year flurry of two historic referendums - on Scottish independence in 2014 and Brexit in 2016 - and two national elections in 2015 and 2017 have delivered often unexpected results that ushered in political crises.

 

Johnson will be aware that the Conservatives under his predecessor, Theresa May, were polling at about 50%, double that of Labour, ahead of the last election in 2017 but then went on to lost their majority in parliament, eventually winning under 2% more of the vote share than Labour.

 

Johnson, who has failed to deliver on his "do or die" promise that Britain would leave the EU on Oct. 31, is pitching the election as a chance to get Brexit done, and he will accuse Corbyn of threatening the United Kingdom's future.

 

He says Labour's plan to hold another referendum on Britain's membership of the bloc, and the possibility of Labour agreeing to another referendum on Scottish independence, risk ripping the United Kingdom apart.

 

"Today should have been the day that Brexit was delivered and we finally left the EU," Johnson said in pre-prepared remarks provided by his office. 

 

Corbyn repeated his claim that Johnson intended to sell off Britain's National Health Service (NHS) to American companies as part of a post-Brexit trade deal with U.S. President Donald Trump.

 

Johnson has denied any such intention. His party was on Thursday campaigning under the slogan: "Back Boris for more NHS funding."

 

Johnson, who has been described by the U.S. president as Britain's Trump, will visit a school, hospital and police unit to argue that Britain needs to deliver Brexit so it can move on and focus on investing in public services.

 

(Additional by Costas Pitas and Andrew MacAskill; Writing by Kate Holton and Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by John Stonestreet, Pravin Char and Grant McCool)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-11-02

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Not a good start for BJ

 

During the prime minister’s visit to Addenbrookes hospital in Cambridge, during which he said the UK would leave the European Union by January “at the absolute latest” he was filmed being booed, and accused of using the hospital for a PR stunt.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-addenbrookes-hospital-visit-cambridge-general-election-nhs-cuts-brexit-a9180576.html

Is that Boris on the picture, doing a Trudeau? Nothing surprises me anymore.

Now that the UK is no longer in the EU perhaps the election can’t be fought on the real issues that effect people’s lives.

31 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Now that the UK is no longer in the EU perhaps the election can’t be fought on the real issues that effect people’s lives.

What like having no chance of getting a council property,and having to wait 3 months for a doctor's appointment?

8 minutes ago, kingdong said:

What like having no chance of getting a council property,and having to wait 3 months for a doctor's appointment?

Which, as it has been pointed out to you before, has nothing to do with Brexit or immigrants and everything to do with underfunding by sucessive Tory governments.

1 hour ago, rooster59 said:

Johnson, who has failed to deliver on his "do or die" promise that Britain would leave the EU on Oct. 31,

Shurely Johnson should be "dead in a ditch" now?

 

Now to be officially referred to as "The Undead".

27 minutes ago, kingdong said:

What like having no chance of getting a council property,and having to wait 3 months for a doctor's appointment?

Well yes, let’s talk about housing and access to health care.

7 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Now that the UK is no longer in the EU perhaps the election can’t be fought on the real issues that effect people’s lives.

Unfortunately Brexit will always be the elephant in the room when it comes to the general election.  Headlines at the moment like "Will Farage split the Brexit voters" make it hard to move on.  I fear that other issues will be side lined by the media as people are whipped up into a frenzy.

 

The promises from the main parties will be the same as they always are,  with no intention of delivering what they pledge.  I just hope people see beyond that but unfortunately there will always be those desperate to believe all the hype.

 

Very difficult to forecast this one. Possibly a Tory win but without an overall majority ie no change from the present. Oh dear....

10 hours ago, kingdong said:

What like having no chance of getting a council property,and having to wait 3 months for a doctor's appointment?

Millions of others work to buy their own place instead of relying on handouts so it’s not all bad ????

 

Where do you wait 3 months for a GP appt ? 

Dominic Cummings has declared he won’t be running the election campaign 

 

After his near faultless no deal Brexit calamity I can’t think why ????????????

10 hours ago, DannyCarlton said:

Which, as it has been pointed out to you before, has nothing to do with Brexit or immigrants and everything to do with underfunding by sucessive Tory governments.

So the 2.4 million eu citizens resident in the uk is an urban myth?as has been explained to you before.

10 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Well yes, let’s talk about housing and access to health care.

How about we talk about freedom of movement and it's effects on the indigenous workforce and the amount of sterling leaving the uk daily.

14 minutes ago, Bruntoid said:

Millions of others work to buy their own place instead of relying on handouts so it’s not all bad ????

 

Where do you wait 3 months for a GP appt ? 

And millions are trapped in the gig economy reliant on state benefits to exist on.

14 minutes ago, kingdong said:

So the 2.4 million eu citizens resident in the uk is an urban myth?as has been explained to you before.

And how many Brits are resident in the EU? And how many work in the health sector compared to the EU citizens working in our health sector?

3 hours ago, kingdong said:

So the 2.4 million eu citizens resident in the uk is an urban myth?as has been explained to you before.

Danny got there first!  He is absolutely right many work in the NHS!

5 hours ago, kingdong said:

And millions are trapped in the gig economy reliant on state benefits to exist on.

But the gig economy and zero hours are very much british inventions - have you not heard the Tories talking about our flexible workforce - this is what they mean !

 

The Irish on the other hand ave followed the EU directive and banned zero hours contract. 

10 minutes ago, tebee said:

But the gig economy and zero hours are very much british inventions - have you not heard the Tories talking about our flexible workforce - this is what they mean !

 

The Irish on the other hand ave followed the EU directive and banned zero hours contract. 

Some workers prefer zero hour contracts

15 minutes ago, sanemax said:

Some workers prefer zero hour contracts

i've never met one that did !

9 minutes ago, tebee said:

i've never met one that did !

How many have you met ?

27 minutes ago, sanemax said:

How many have you met ?

I have quite a few Twitter friends on them - they all hate it 

Zero hour contracts COULD be a good ADDITION to regular contracts - for both employers and employees.

However, they turned out to be a lousy REPLACEMENT for regular contracts - for employees.

Without the British governments stepping on the breaks, the EU would have outlawed them.

 

 

16 minutes ago, oldhippy said:

Zero hour contracts COULD be a good ADDITION to regular contracts - for both employers and employees.

However, they turned out to be a lousy REPLACEMENT for regular contracts - for employees.

Without the British governments stepping on the breaks, the EU would have outlawed them.

 

 

The problem is according to the people I know you have to come into work, often at short notice, when your employer wants - otherwise they terminate the contract.

 

They find it impossible to plan their lives  as they don't know when they will be working,they find it impossible to plan their finances as they have no idea how  much they will be needed and how much they will earn.