Oh, the oxygen of optimism! After two years of thinking the Conservatives can’t be beaten for another generation, Labour finally has its head above the clouds. It is at last ahead of the Conservatives, in some polls by as much as 10 points. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine might tamper with the numbers a little, but the opposition is in the game. The tide has turned!
Only it hasn’t. In fact, it would not be going too far to say that the current good showing for Labour – which seems to be largely based on Boris Johnson’s bungling of the Owen Paterson and “partygate” affairs – is the worst thing that could happen to Britain’s progressive forces. It takes their eye off the need to be ruthlessly methodical in unravelling the Tories’ parliamentary majority.
