The right-wing press has branded Jeremy Corbyn as totally unelectable. They are right – he is. Not for the reasons they suggest, but because of simple maths.
Over the past few weeks we have seen Corbyn-phobia on hyperdrive. The media has claimed he will “bankrupt Britain”, “cripple families” and “endanger our national security”. This ignores the fact that Labour will not be leading a majority government on Friday morning.
The Conservatives are still 10 points ahead in the latest polls, meaning the best Labour can hope for is a hung parliament. Regardless of the actual impact of his planned tax changes or his commitment to nuclear disarmament, Corbyn wouldn’t then be able to deliver much of his agenda. The only thing there would be consensus for would be a People’s Vote.
Professor John Curtice says we are facing a “pretty binary contest” between an outright victory for Johnson or a hung parliament leading to a referendum. The polling guru also says the chances of a Labour majority are “as close to zero as one can safely say”.
Labour is at risk of losing traditional heartlands in the Midlands and the North of England – and it is failing to woo back Scottish voters. In the circumstances, it’s hard to see how it can come anywhere close to gaining the extra 64 seats it needs to secure a majority.
The betting odds reinforce this view. The 33/1 being offered for an outright Labour victory translates into a 3% chance of it happening. The odds of an overall Tory majority are about 75%, while there’s a one in five chance of a hung parliament.
With little chance of the Labour manifesto ever seeing the light of day, the media’s scaremongering is absurd – except when you realise they are trying to stop people voting tactically. What they neglect to print is that a vote for Labour where it’s the main challenger to the Tories could pose a significant threat to Boris Johnson’s Brexit.
A mere 40,000 voters in 36 seats have the capacity to re-shape this election and rob the Tories of a majority, according to research by Best for Britain.
Faced with a choice between a Brexit that will damage Britain for decades or a hung parliament that will hold a People’s Vote but do little else, people have no reason to fear voting tactically for Labour. The alternative is far scarier.
InFacts recommends voting for the candidate with the best chance of beating the Tories so long as they back a People’s Vote
