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The verdict, delivered by a lifelong Conservative supporter in the wake of Rishi Sunak’s scathing performance in the leadership debate, will have reverberated around Conservative HQ for all the wrong reasons.
“I’ve voted for them in every election but I have to say Rishi Sunak looks like a loser with unoriginal ideas and it’s been very painful to watch,” the spectator said.
The Prime Minister had a particularly difficult time during the Sky News debate, appearing nervous at times and drawing boos and laughter from the Grimsby audience.
Even the most forward-thinking politician would have struggled in the face of such ridicule, but Mr Sunak and his advisers are unlikely to realise the difficulty they face in securing an unlikely victory on July 4th.
Indeed, allegations have emerged that the Conservative leader and his aides have abandoned the idea of winning the election and instead redirected their campaign towards limiting Labour’s majority.
The shift in strategy comes after a series of avoidable blunders by Mr Sunak, the first of which – leaving the commemorations of the Normandy landings early – continues to haunt him more than a week on.
Asked in an ITV interview what he missed growing up, the Prime Minister seemed at a loss for an answer, replying “Sky TV”, and attempts to revive his campaign went off the rails again.
The campaign’s stagnation comes as Nigel Farage’s Reform UK overtakes the Conservatives in a YouGov poll, with the Conservatives completely failing to reduce Labour’s 20-point lead.
New research from BMG I The poll also found that 46% of Conservative supporters want some kind of cooperation between the two parties.
This led to a significant increase in campaign messaging from CCHQ urging voters not to give Labour and Sir Keir Starmer a historic majority.
One CCHQ insider said: I While there was no explicit instruction to change campaign strategy, there was “evidence that it was a new message.”
“They are [Mr Sunak’s team] “You can read the polls,” the source added.
This was nowhere more clear than in comments made by the party’s most confident voice, Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, on air on Wednesday morning, when he acknowledged the Conservatives were fighting to avoid a 1997-style defeat and urged voters not to give Labour a “super majority”.
His comments were followed by Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, who warned voters not to give Labour a “further majority” by voting for the Reform Party.
Conservative members, candidates and activists on the ground all feel the Prime Minister is dooming the party to failure.
According to one source I: [Reform] I don’t think the poll itself is a big deal, but the broader picture is really worrying.
“To be fair, apart from D-Day he [Mr Sunak] It’s not as bad as expected, but it’s a bit lame. Starmer doesn’t deserve what he’s about to get, but that’s the way it is.”
Asked whether the Prime Minister’s attitude made it seem he was prepared to lose, a candidate in a close constituency replied: “We’ve all seen it, but I still think he beat Starmer.” [in the debate]Despite the polls.
But the Conservative MP was quick to add: “We clearly lost the election.”
Perhaps the clearest sign that Sunak and his aides are heading for a major defeat is that they are already attracting sympathy from the opposition.
Speaking of the Prime Minister’s blunders at the Normandy landings, the Labour strategist said: “If I’d been there the decision would have made a lot of sense to everyone there.”
Senior Conservative figures insist there has been no change in tactics in recent days, despite an apparent shift in messaging from “sticking to the plan” to “not handing Starmer a blank cheque”.
Conservative officials denied that the new “blank cheque” attack line was an admission that the Conservatives were on track to lose the election, rather than an attempt to mitigate the scale of their collapse.
“It’s not about that, it’s about making sure Labour doesn’t win,” the source said. “If Labour wins, we believe he will be free to do what he wants, regardless of the size of the party.”
“The campaign is only just over halfway through,” they added.
But Mr Farage is now demanding to be treated as the “opposition of the Labour Party” and has directly called for him to “go head-to-head” with Mr Starmer in the debate.
Reform party insiders have contacted the BBC to request that Mr Farage be invited to appear on its special programme on the four party leaders in late June.
Party insiders also said the Conservative approach of trying to ignore the party – as seen by Penny Mordaunt’s refusal to speak to Mr Farage in Thursday’s debate – was not sustainable.
“Mr Sunak has left and the two [he and Starmer] “The debate is as boring as gutter water, especially when we’re talking about 1p in income tax,” the source said.
Sources close to Mr Sunak insist he remains optimistic, with one source saying he will focus on tax to keep the campaign afloat.
“He’s really driven. His manifesto came out this week and it was a real shock. He’s really conservative on tax and spending, with Labour raising taxes and all that.”
Trump himself has repeatedly said the campaign is only half over and has vowed not to give up.
Responding to a question on a YouGov poll about reforms, Mr Sunak told reporters in Puglia, Italy, during a visit to the G7 summit: “The election is only half over, isn’t it? That’s why I’m fighting hard for every single vote.”
“What the polls are showing – and I always say it’s the July 4th poll that matters – if this poll is repeated on July 4th, it’s like giving Labour a blank cheque to tax everyone – tax their homes, their pensions, their cars, their families. I will fight hard to stop that from happening.”
Mr Sunak added: “When people think about the substance of what they want from a future Government, if they want border control, they will get it from us.”
And he maintained he was optimistic that “the choice will become clear to people between now and Election Day.”
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Rishi Sunak, Sir Keir Starmer and other party leaders are campaigning. I‘s election live blog is your go-to place for everything general election news.
On Monday the Liberal Democrats published their manifesto, followed by the Conservatives on Tuesday, which included further cuts to NHS. On Wednesday the Greens will publish their manifesto, which they hope will help them win some key seats.
Labour’s manifesto launch on Thursday was interrupted by protesters calling for stronger policies for young people, but Mr Starmer was undeterred, announcing changes to the voting age and confirming the party’s positions on tax and spending cuts.
I has signed the Save Britain’s Rivers manifesto, calling on all political parties to commit to improving our waterways. The Liberal Democrats were the first to back the campaign, followed by the Green Party.