Election 2024: All Morning Wire’s winners and losers of the campaign trail this week
All week, Morning Wire has been rounding up the day’s winners and losers of the general election campaign.
Whether it’s stump speeches, policy implosions or just political gaffes, we’re bringing you the highs and lows from all parties.
So, as the first full week of the election campaign draws to a close, here’s who we thought came out on top (and… not so much).
Monday, May 27
Winner: Starmer, we guess
Coming out reasonably strong with his first major speech of the campaign so far, was Sir Keir Starmer. While political junkies may not have found much new content to chew over [‘pebble-dash semi’, tick; ‘my father was a toolmaker’, tick; ‘five missions, six first steps’, tick, tick], with most normal voters still drawing a blank on the Labour leader’s policies and personality, it was a decent introduction – and kept the Labour show on the road.
Loser: the unnamed political adviser(s) being blamed for National Service
While Twitter/X wits were already dubbing the PM’s new scheme ‘natty serves’, an irate Steve Baker opted to go nuclear – insisting the policy had been dreamt up by a “political adviser or advisers and sprung on candidates, some of whom are relevant ministers”. Baker, of course, is minister of state for Northern Ireland, and made his remarks in response to the Belfast Telegraph’s stance that it was a “further example of just how little the government considers Northern Ireland”. Awks….
In case you missed it: Reform? No, not like that!
Outgoing Tory MP Lucy Allan, who is standing down in her Telford seat, has been suspended by the Conservative Party after endorsing Reform UK candidate Alan Adams who is standing in her constituency. The original Allan posted on X: “I am supporting Alan Adams to be Telford’s next MP.” It took less than an hour for a Tory spokesperson to confirm: “Lucy Allan has been suspended from the party with immediate effect… a vote for Reform is a vote for Keir Starmer.”
Tuesday, May 28
Winner: Angela Rayner
The deputy Labour leader will be punching the air tonight after Greater Manchester Police dropped its investigation into the sale of her council house. GMP said no further police action would be taken and that “council tax and personal tax do not fall into the jurisdiction of policing” but that it had shared details of its investigation with HMRC. Rayner had said she would step down if found to have broken the law. [The Guardian later said HMRC would also be taking no further action against Rayner.]
Loser: Ed Davey
It can’t always be much fun coming in third place at an election, but they usually manage to make it look entertaining during the campaign. We’re not so sure that was the case today, when Ed Davey was forced to admit one of his plunges from a paddleboard into the (probably still chilly) waters of Windermere, in the Lake District, was for the good of the cameras. Don’t ruin the illusion!
In case you missed it: Hunt’s Instagram snap…
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt raised eyebrows today as he posted a snap of himself campaigning in a soggy anorak a la the Prime Minister outside No10. His choice of the caption ‘Je suis Rishi Sunak’, an apparent nod to expressions of solidarity post the 2015 Charlie Hebdo attack, may have been outside the bounds of taste for some…
Wednesday, May 29
Winner: Rishi Sunak
Look, we’re not saying Rishi Sunak has had a tricky start to the campaign, but – without speaking too soon – seven days in and the Prime Minister appears to be starting to hit his stride. After a JL Partners poll narrowed Labour’s lead to just 12 points (other polls are available), Sunak took the sleeper train to Cornwall, where he was spotted punching the air after being told he had “perfectly spliced” a fibre optic broadband cable. Those nerd allegations are going nowhere.
Loser: Keir Starmer
Best-laid plans went awry for Labour’s top team. Keir Starmer and Wes Streeting’s pledge to clear the NHS backlog was overshadowed by an ongoing row over whether Diane Abbott could stand in Hackney North amid accusations of a left-wing purge and overreach by Starmerites. Expect to hear more about this at the ITV debate on June 4.
In case you missed it: Truss’ antics…
In news we weren’t expecting to write today, Birmingham Labour MP Jess Phillips has urged Sunak to deselect former PM Liz Truss in her South West Norfolk seat after it emerged she would be interviewed on the “far-right platform ‘Lotus Eaters”. Phillips said founder Carl Benjamin had “despicable views about women”. He described her comments as “flagrant misinformation and outright lies”.
Thursday, May 30
Winner: The Lib Dem’s sense of humour
Alright, credit where it’s due. It’s hard to argue Ed Davey isn’t having the most fun out of any of the party leaders so far. (Other than perhaps Richard Tice, who opted to serve lunchtime drinks to a bemused crowd of hacks at a press-conference-slash-booze-up.) Davey, however, has taken the entire Lib Dem campaign machine on what appears to be his half-term holiday. He’s been on bikes, whizzing down waterslides… who’s to say what’s next?
Loser: The Starmerites
It was another bad day for the Labour leader’s inner circle, as a second round of carefully choreographed policy – this time on policing – barely got a look in amid continued fury over Diane Abbott and several other left-wing MPs being rather unceremoniously deselected or dropped by the party. Deputy leader Angela Rayner even weighed into the mess this lunchtime, declaring she believed Abbott should be able to stand. Oh, dear Keir…
In case you missed it: Cherrypicking Party-gate…
Other than his Chancellor picking a fight with Labour over tax policy, it was a rather quieter day for Rishi Sunak, who opted to spend it touring a cherry picker manufacturer in Buckinghamshire, where he was introduced by the Tory candidate for Milton Keynes North as “our tech bro from another mo”. Yes, really.
However, he did face some questioning from a worker at the plant whose mother died during the pandemic as Party-gate rumbled on at No10 about how he could be trusted. The PM told her he was “really sorry” and called it “really tough” before adding: “For my part, I apologise that I showed up to a meeting earlier.” A not-so-subtle dig at his predecessor Boris Johnson?