The week that resulted in a UK in political limbo
May aides’ resignation Protest against PM THE UPS AND DOWNS OFTHE FINAL DAYS OF CAMPAIGNING
THERESA May suffered the loss of her two closest aides yesterday as they paid the price for the disastrous General Election result.
Mrs May’s joint chiefs of staff, Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, resigned amid intense Tory criticism in the wake of the snap election which saw Mrs May lose her Commons majority.
In an effort to shore up her position in Number 10 the Prime Minister has sent her Chief Whip to Belfast for talks with the Democratic Unionist Party ahead of the first test of Parliament’s returns.
In a resignation statement, Mr Timothy acknowledged one of his regrets was the way Mrs May’s social care policy, dubbed the “dementia tax” by critics, had been handled. HUNDREDS of protesters gathered in central London yesterday to voice their anger at Theresa May’s government and her alliance with the Democratic Unionist Party.
People carrying placards reading anti-DUP and proJeremy Corbyn messages basked in the sun in Parliament Square one day after a shock election result returned a hung parliament.
Organisers from Stand Up To Racism and the Stop The War Coalition spoke to the crowd, who cheered at the mention of the Labour leader’s name.
Musicians performed to the protesters, who seemed in good spirits. One organiser led chants of “racist, sexist, anti-gay, the DUP has got to go”. PERHAPS we should have known the Conservative campaign was in trouble.
A number of opinion polls showed Labour was catching up with the Tories – although others claimed that Theresa May’s party was still firmly in the lead.
And it was widely agreed that Mrs May had run a disastrous campaign. Her message was that we needed a “strong and stable” government, but it wasn’t clear why she’d decided to call an election if that was her priority.
She had a strong and stable government anyway.
And beyond the slogan, she’d failed to offer any positive ideas for Britain. The only policies anyone could remember where making elderly people pay more for residential social care – the so-called dementia tax – and taking away free school meals.
But despite this, pretty much everyone assumed that Conservatives would win the election with an improved majority.
That includes Labour MPs as well as Conservatives. They told journalists that the message they were getting on the doorstep, as they met voters, suggested Labour was in trouble.
As the week progressed, very few people understood what was really happening. The general election campaign was at full throttle again, following a brief pause prompted by the London Bridge terror attacks.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn used a speech on Sunday evening to accuse Theresa May of denying police and security services the resources they need, and of burying evidence of Saudi support for violent extremists.
Conservatives hit back with a broadside on Mr Corbyn’s record of opposing counter-terror laws and the use of shoot-to-kill tactics by police facing armed attackers.
It meant the row over policing and security dominated the debate on Monday.
Opinion polls continued to be over the place.
One, by ICM for The Guardian, showed the Conservatives with an 11-point lead.
But YouGov once again predicted a hung Parliament.
The YouGov findings were welcomed all Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn addresses a huge crowd outside the Sage in Gateshead Labour supporters outside Shildon Civic Hall in Durham by Jeremy Corbyn’s supporters, but privately prompted groans from some Labour candidates who felt that their best hope of picking up votes was to reassure voters that Mr Corbyn had no chance of becoming Prime Minister.
Still, Mr Corbyn showed he could still attract the crowds when thousands turned up to welcome him in Gateshead, despite the rain. Conservatives despatched Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to County Durham to warn that Brexit was at risk if Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn became Prime Minister.
Mr Corbyn would be “eaten for breakfast” by EU leaders determined to reverse the result of last year’s referendum vote, the Foreign Secretary said.
And he also claimed Mr Corbyn would do a deal with the Liberal Democrats and SNP – something Mr Corbyn had ruled out.
But Mr Johnson was questioned about cuts to North East police forces. He insisted the Tories will invest 30% more into counter terrorism and ‘a lot more’ into armed police.
When it came to election rallies, nobody was going to outdo Mr Corbyn. Boris Johnson gave a speech at Shildon Civic Hall He addressed six simultaneous rallies across the UK in a dramatic plea to voters to kick out the Tory government.
Mr Corbyn was in Birmingham, at a star-studded Labour event featuring comedian Steve Coogan, chart-topping band Clean Bandit and Madchester stars The Farm.
But his message was broadcast live by satellite to five more rallies – in Barry, Wales; Brighton; Glasgow; London, and Warrington. Jeremy Corbyn continued to attract large crowds as he zig-zagged across the country for an energetic final day of campaigning.
He began by speaking in Glasgow and travelled to Weaver Vale in the North West, and Clwyd West in Wales, before addressing three rallies in London.
Conservative leader Theresa May flew to Norfolk for a final push.
And her last event was an evening appearance in Solihull, near Birmingham, where there are a number of marginal seats.
There was a reshuffle in Mr Corbyn’s team as Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott stood down, citing ill health, to be replaced by former Shadow Policing Minister Lyn Brown.
Ms Abbott had been criticised for her performance in media interviews. Labour colleague Barry Gardiner said she had been diagnosed with a “serious long-term condition”.
And Labour faced an unhelpful intervention from SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, who claimed Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale had told her privately she felt Brexit could justify a second independence vote.
It added fuel to the Tory claim Mr Corbyn as PM would oversee a “coalition of chaos” by offering the SNP the chance of a second referendum in return for their support. Voters went to the polls in 650 constituencies across the United Kingdom, making for a frantic day for candidates and activists, as they knocked on doors in an attempt to encourage supporters to get out and vote.
The real excitement began when the exit poll was published by the BBC, ITV and Sky News at 10pm.
Broadcasters announced the Conservatives were on course to be the largest party in the House of Commons