#wellingborough

[tomorrowusa]

« I think these [recent Tory] governments have been too terrible to make fun of. I think they’ve been incompetent and corrupt and I’m not going to make jokes to give them time off. »

— Actor Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who, The Thick of It, etc.) at The Guardian commenting on the last few Conservative governments in the UK.

You know that things are bad when a government is too terrible even for comedy.

The site Britain Elects projects that if a general election were held today, Labour would more than double its seats in the House of Commons. The Lib Dems would rebound nicely as well. Though the Tories would lose about 58% of their seats. The Scottish National Party (SNP), mixed in with Others on this graphic, would probably take a hit due to recent scandals.

An election needs to be called in the next 12 months. There had been some speculation a few months ago about a spring election. But Rishi Sunak may be thinking that the longer he waits, the greater the chance of a political miracle for the Tories.

There are by-elections scheduled for February 15th in the constituencies of Kingswood and Wellingborough. One in Blackpool South is also likely. All three of those seats were won by Conservatives in 2019. If they managed to hold on to just one of those seats they would probably be overjoyed.

[livesunique]

Hinwick House, Wellingborough, North Bedfordshire, ‎England

[objetoantesllamadodisco]

#483

THOM YORKE . ANIMA

xl recordings . 2019

spotify

[travelbinge]

Knuston Hall by Bernd Zimmermann

Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, England

[the-witch-finder]

I was wondering if there are any witches in the Wellingborough area of Northamptonshire in England?

[doettler]

I think sometimes all the charities are doing is mopping up the blood. It's a shame...#thomyorke #libra #radiohead #vocalist #songwriter #white #chocolate #farm #wellingborough #northamptonshire #england #alternative #rock #electronic #music #experimental #blackandwhitephotography #vocals #activist #dj #quotes #words #astrology #october #7 #multiinstrumentalist

[jerrylee91]

#wellingborough #happy #relax☀️ (helyszín: Wellingborough, Northamptonshire)

[tomorrowusa]

In the UK, the ruling Conservatives got clobbered in two more by-elections.

This has been happening so often over the past couple of years that it almost doesn't seem like news any more. It's more like an ongoing political saga of Tory decline.

Labour picked up seats in the House of Commons previously held by Tories in the constituencies of Wellingborough and Kingswood. The results were not close and displayed a stunning drop in support for the ruling party.

^^^ There appears to have been some tactical voting as many Lib Dem voters seem to have thrown their support to Labour just to get rid of the Tories.

By-elections: Tory gloom deepens after double poll blow

What is most striking about the results in Wellingborough and Kingswood is that they feel almost unsurprising, despite the scale of Labour's wins. Why? Because it extends the trend of Labour marching forward and Conservative gloom. The results underline the current likelihood, if the mood of the electorate does not shift, of Labour winning the general election. But Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is going out of his way to avoid even the merest whiff of complacency. Despite the massive swings to Labour, he told BBC Breakfast his party were merely "credible contenders" at the general election. The added political spice that garnishes the Tory gloom today is the performance of Reform UK. I'm typing this in a café in Wellingborough, in Northamptonshire, where this morning Reform candidate and deputy leader Ben Habib has been on a victory lap. Mr Habib finished third behind the Labour and the Conservative candidates, but it represents a victory in Reform's battle for influence, as they inflicted two very painful statistical wounds on Rishi Sunak's party.

Reform UK is a rightwing populist party which grew out of Brexit.

Polls for the past six months show Labour with a consistent lead of roughly 20 percentage points nationally.

If not already, this is a particularly good year to take an interest in UK politics. By law, an election must be called within the next 11 months. Some people are betting on a May parliamentary election because local elections are scheduled for early that month. But Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak may wish a delay until autumn in the hope that things will miraculously improve for his party.