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Political commentator Mike Indian discusses the Conservatives' dismal election campaign, feeling it indicative of a tired, worn-out government. He wonders where Labour's inspiring moment is, feeling the Tories are losing rather than Labour winning. He senses that Labour is planning attacks on CGT and wealth. Despite Nigel Farage attempting – for the 8th time – to become an MP, Mike thinks turnout could be down. He'll be fascinated to see if Reform get more votes than the stunt-obsessed LibDems. Looking at what has happened with European elections, he believes that Starmer must deliver, or politics could become more extreme and populist in the UK too.
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Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University explains that the Conservative Party is no longer trusted, that it is out of touch with its base and so is relying on negative campaigning. Without a positive vision, they stand no chance of stopping a landslide. While Labour is more moderate and united, it may come under pressure once it is in power. Can it rise to the many domestic and global challenges it will face, particularly with such an appalling handover? if so, it might become the natural party of government. It will be fascinating to see if Reform overtake the Tories in the polls, in which case the Conservative argument against voting for Reform vanishes.
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Political commentator Mike Indian discusses the main parties' prospects for the UK's General Election. He thinks that this might be a day without a high turnout. With so many Tory MPs abandoning politics, he feels that the gap between the Conservative Party and its membership will become even wider. He discusses Labour's big Achilles' heel and laments the lack of an element of excitement, though he expects the TV debates to be interesting. A change of government, he says, could be a good thing. It will shake the Conservatives out of complacency, though Labour might find that the current control freakery will come back to haunt them.
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Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University offers some thoughts on the General Election, explaining that Rishi Sunak is not a lucky PM. This is, he points out, a year in which half of humanity is going to the polls, with 1.4 billion Indians entitled to vote. But with press freedoms being curtailed, is the country sleepwalking into becominging a managed democracy and can it maintain growth while reducing its serious unemployment problems, particularly among young graduates? He also looks at the problems global companies have with mounting geo-political tensions and why economists need to think precisely about populism, as political scientists have for some time.
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Political commentator Mike Indian discusses Keir Starmer's six pledges as the long General Election campaign gets underway. He looks at why underinvestment in infrastructure in the UK is coming back to haunt us, offering some suggestions at ways to improve things. And he looks at who is pulling the strings in Labour behind the scenes at think tank Labour Together. Although Labour may mock the chaos of the Conservative Party, Mike wonders how turbulent the broad church of the Labour Party will be when it is in power.
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Professor Tim Evans of Middlesex University looks at shadow foreign secretary David Lammy's attempts to woo Donald Trump as well as Joe Biden. With even the Prime Minister appearing not to believe the Conservatives will be in Government soon, he considers the future of the party and "Conservatism", wondering if there is going to be a massive shake-up of the order of British politics. And he looks at the shocking state of the NHS estate, with over 2,000 hospital buildings predating the birth of the NHS in 1948.
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