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DEMOLITION DAY FOR LABOUR

Brown's party suffered their worst results in 40 years

Saturday May 3,2008

By Macer Hall, Political Editor

Comment Speech Bubble Have your say(11)

GORDON Brown was last night given six months to get a grip or get out following Labour’s local election meltdown.

Furious backbenchers rounded on the Prime Minister over the party’s trouncing in town hall polls.

It was Labour’s worst local election result since records began four decades ago and its lowest national share of the vote since the end of the First World War. The party slumped to below a quarter share of the national vote and came third behind the Liberal Democrats.

More than 330 Labour councillors lost their seats. In contrast, the Tories won nearly 45 per cent of the vote and more than 250 council seats.

If yesterday’s vote were repeated at the next general election, the Tories can expect an overall Commons majority of 150. Among senior Labour figures who would lose their seats are Cabinet ministers Ed Balls, Jacqui Smith, James Purnell, John Hutton, Caroline Flint and Ruth Kelly.

But failing to grasp the enormity of the defeat, Labour Chief Whip Geoff Hoon said last night: “There is no crisis. This isn’t something that’s going to affect the fundamental stability of the Government.”

Mr Brown was understood to be openly comparing himself with former Tory Prime Minister John Major in conversations with his aides yesterday.

The Prime Minister was claiming he could repeat his predecessor’s against-the-odds election triumph of 1992. But many insiders suspect a more suitable comparison is the Major regime’s long, sad decline to defeat in 1997.

Yesterday’s result is remarkably similar to a local election drubbing suffered by the Tories under Mr Major in 1995 when they got 25 per cent and Labour 47 per cent.

Labour’s defeat yesterday makes Mr Brown a candidate for being the least electorally successful leader in the party’s history. Labour slumped to a 24 per cent share of the national vote, lower than any result since comparable records began in 1968.

Compared with vote share at previous general elections, it is worse than the miserable 27.6 per cent achieved when Michael Foot was leader in 1983.

At the 1918 general election, Labour won 20 per cent as a new and emerging political force.

Even more significantly, the Tories have broken through at last in the North of England with spectacular gains in former Labour strongholds of Greater Manchester, Lancashire and the North-east.

The Conservatives opened a lead over Labour of more than 20 per cent, a feat not even achieved under Margaret Thatcher. David Cameron claimed the polls represented a “big moment” for his party. Mr Brown was left contemplating two grim years of clinging on to No10 before a general election must be called by June 2010.

Many Labour MPs privately fear the results show that the party has reached a “tipping point” towards irreversible defeat. And Left-wingers last night threatened that the PM could be forced out sooner unless something is done to reverse his popularity plunge.

Backbench rebel Ian Gibson warned Mr Brown to regain control by Labour’s annual conference in September or face a virtually ungovernable party. “I’ll give him six months to do it or there will be really hard talking,” he said.

“At the annual conference, if we think we are in a position where we could certainly lose the next election and nothing is happening and we are not moving forward with new exciting issues, then I think a lot of people will get very angry.

“There is time to come up with it, but if not we want to win for Labour, we want to win that fourth term. If Brown is the man to do it he has got to give us those policies.”

Even Cabinet minister Hazel Blears admitted: “Basically, the message is ‘Get a grip, sort things out’.” And another Labour MP, Derek Wyatt, described the poll drubbing as Mr Brown’s “John Major moment”. He said: “Gordon has committed spectacular own goals and the public is punishing him for it.”

A sombre mood descended over Downing Street as the results poured in yesterday. Mr Brown said: “It’s clear to me that this has been a disappointing night, indeed a bad night for Labour.

“I said I was going to listen and lead. We are in difficult economic circumstances. I think people accept that we’re going through some of the most challenging times we’ve seen in many years.” His loyal ally Mr Balls conceded that voters had punished Labour for the soaring tax burden and rocketing cost of living.

“I think people are worried about the state of the economy but on the doorstep they have also been cross with us,” he said.

“They think that their tax bills are going up, that their fuel prices are going up, that their utility bills are going up and they want to know that we’re doing more to help them through difficult times and that we are on their side.”

Mr Brown is spending the weekend at Chequers poring over the results and desperately attempting to map out a fightback strategy. Other ministers are to gather for an election inquest at Chevening, Foreign Secretary David Miliband’s official residence.

Labour insiders claim that they can begin counter-attacking by putting Tory policies under detailed scrutiny.

In a whistle-stop tour of northern towns that witnessed Conservative victories, Mr Cameron said: “I think these results are not just a vote against Gordon Brown and his Government. I think they are a vote of positive confidence in the Conservative Party.

“I think this is a very big moment for the Conservative Party, but I don’t want anyone to think that we would deserve to win an election just on the back of a failing Government.

“I want us to really prove to people that we can make the changes they want to see. That’s what I’m going to devote myself and my party to doing over the next few months.”

Conservatives gained control of a string of councils, many previously thought unwinnable, including Southampton, Bury, Harlow, Maidstone and North Tyneside. Senior Tory chiefs admitted that yesterday’s results exceeded their wildest expectations.

Labour suffered a mauling in its previous heartland of South Wales, and lost control of at least five councils across the principality.

Ministers struggled to put a brave face on the debacle and conceded that Mr Brown’s decision to hammer the low-paid by scrapping the 10p lowest income tax band had backfired. Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman admitted results were “very disappointing”.

*** PATRICK O'FLYNN: THIS IS THE END FOR BROWN ***

VERY, VERY EASY

03.05.08, 8:16pm

VERY, VERY EASY TO PICK ON AND CRITICISE BROWN - AS THE MEMBERS OF HIS PARTY WILL DO TO TRY AND CON. THE ELECTORATE.

BROWN IS NO DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER LABOURITE JUST LOOK AT THEM - INCOMPETANT, INEFFICIENT, LACKING EXPERIENCES COMMONSENSE WITH GREEDY EGOTISTICAL CHARACTERS.

• Posted by: nowyouknow • Report Comment

BROWNS BROKEN PROMISE ON REFERENDUM

03.05.08, 6:40pm

Could say he is a liar!
To those interested on EU referendum please click on link

stuartwheeler.co.uk

He is suing the government over this and has won the first round.

• Posted by: noway • Report Comment

TAX JUNKIE

03.05.08, 5:04pm

HE LIKES TO GIVE AWAY HARD WORKING taxpayers money if the DWP website on benefits is anything to go by - no wonder he is broke
In the past 10 years of this Gov the benefits bill was
£1,226 BILLION POUNDS
In the year 2007 it was £125,416 MILLION

And his plans for the next 2 years is to give away even more and wants more immigrants to come in - What planet is he living on????

• Posted by: noway • Report Comment

BACKBENCHERS MOUTHING OFF

03.05.08, 4:48pm

they have seen all things happening over the last ten years
why did they not open their mouths then, talk about rats deserting the sinking ship just shows what a motley crew this labour government as been, and I hope thats what they will be AS BEENS, and never again hopefully

• Posted by: ANNR • Report Comment

GORD MUGABE BROON

03.05.08, 2:03pm

Brown will hang on to power untill he forced out, he says he will listen now,

1 Vote on the EU treaty, within the next two months
2 Shut the doors on immigration
3 Scrap the human rights bill
4Reduce taxes
5 Get tough on crime
but sorry to say the lefties will win in the policy making, and Mugabe Broon will continue to make promises and forget to tell us the fine print.
we need a General Election NOW, as we have a unelected dictator running the country into the ground.

• Posted by: mike1951 • Report Comment

DON'T WAIT SIX MONTHS.....DO IT NOW !!

03.05.08, 12:45pm

www.labour.org.uk...... Gordon Brown has now replaced www (World Wide Web) with Nu Labours personal slogan, chanted regularly each day by members of this numbskull government. This slogan is now so tired & well worn, that MP's repeating it are looking tired themselves & now adding a maniacal grin as they stress & modulate each word.

'W' e got it wrong
'W' e made a mistake
'W' e are going to put it right

To say "He is the biggest disaster ever" has to be the most monstrous understatement of the century, if Gordon bothered to read posts on all the forums he would know what people really think without leaving his office. The answer is staring him in the face & he still can't see it......Gordon, don't take a chance with six months, just call for a general election now; and all your future problems will disappear & so will you!!

• Posted by: Anonymouse • Report Comment