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Tory MPs were on high alert ahead of the autumn election after Rishi Sunak reset his campaign strategy and warned voters they would be less secure if Sir Keir Starmer became Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister warned that the world was facing “one of the most dangerous times we have ever known” and that Labor was refusing to match its spending commitments. He acknowledged that his new pitch to voters “makes the devil even better.” Devoting 2.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) to defense by 2030 sent the wrong message.
This marks a new shift in direction for the prime minister, who as recently as October claimed he was a “replacement” candidate, and Conservative MPs are now confident that he will He said it appeared to provide a “soft framework” for elections.
One Conservative cabinet minister suggested Mr Sunak was “resetting” his strategy and “drawing the line on local elections” which had been disastrous for the party.
But even though the highly political speech reignited speculation of an early poll in the summer, it is too late to get a fresh message to voters within six to eight weeks, and the new strategy suggests that the prime minister will rather wait until the fall. The former minister said he was underscoring the suggestion that he would go to the polls. .
He said “very little has changed” in his short campaign, adding: “As Lord Lynton Crosby said, you can’t fatten pigs on market day.”
But one Tory MP said Mr Sunak’s speech came this week as invitations to election strategy meetings were sent out to parliamentary candidates and local activists, sparking grassroots rumors of an election in June or July. The attack was carried out minutes after it spread.
They said all MPs, local Conservative Party association chairs and parliamentary candidates have been invited to a “special election campaign briefing session” to be held this Thursday, and that invitations were sent out at the same time as the Prime Minister’s speech. Stated.
A senior official said the briefing, run by Conservative Party headquarters, will focus on digital campaigning and aim to prepare candidates and grassroots people for elections “at any time”. said.
Answering questions after a speech at Westminster think tank Policy Exchange, Mr Sunak refused to rule out the possibility of a July poll, saying only that an election would be held “later this year”.
But after the speech, several Conservative MPs suggested that suspicions that Mr Sunak would take office in the autumn had been confirmed.
One member of parliament said: I He said the speech provided a “soft framework” for the narrative ahead of the “November” polls.
A second former minister said Mr Sunak had “set the themes and the boundaries”.
“I think this is a campaign that will probably take five or six months,” the lawmaker added.
Meanwhile, Downing Street dismissed questions about whether Mr Sunak was abandoning his five pledges to voters after failing to mention in his speech the NHS waiting list, which he said he would cut, adding that the Prime Minister would , claimed to have mentioned economic growth, debt and the small ship crisis. This informs him of four promises.
The prime minister’s wide-ranging speech addressed the threat posed by the next five years from an “axis of authoritarian powers” including China, Russia, Iran and North Korea, extremists seeking to sow division at home, artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence. warned of concerns about new technologies such as Global forces are putting people’s economic security at risk.
“People want to know that there are people in charge who understand these risks,” he said, “because only when people understand what’s going on can we trust them to keep us safe.” Because it can be done.”
Mr Sunak added: “We believe we can keep this country safe, but Keir Starmer’s actions show he is unable to do so.”
The Prime Minister also accused the opposition of trying to “close the path to victory” with “talk of doom loops, gaslighting and pension threats” and said he was “optimistic” about the future. He claimed that it was only the Conservative Party.
He said: “The only thing they have is a calculation that you might feel very bad about your country. They won’t even have the energy to ask what they’re going to do with their powers.”
Mr Sunak admitted people were feeling “anxiety and uncertainty” but denied this was all down to “14 years of Conservative government”.
Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer rejected Mr Sunak’s attack, saying from his role as Director of Public Prosecutions: “I know first-hand the importance of national security” and that the speech was “the first of seven in 18 months”. “This is the second reset.”
“This shows that the choice going into this election is now quite clear: a transformed Labor party that puts country first and party second, or a transformed Labor Party that continues to be chaotic and divided. The choice is to continue in power.”It has caused many difficulties for a long time. ”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “This Conservative government is outdated and out of touch. Rishi Sunak must do the right thing and give the people a general election.”