Coronation and Keir help Sunak’s cause

RISHI Sunak will have an extra special reason to celebrate when the King’s magnificent coronation takes place next month.

He’s expecting heavy losses in local elections, threatening to undermine the momentum which the Conservative Party has built up in recent weeks.

Some Tory MPS even feared that a poor showing in local polls could reignite the civil war within their party and lead to yet another damaging leadership challenge.

But luckily for the PM, the nation’s attention will be focused on the pageantry atwestminster Abbey rather than hostilities across the road in Parliament.

Mr Sunak also has reason to be grateful to his opponent, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer.

After three years in the job, it’s still not clear what he stands for. He’s always quick to criticise but slow to explain what he would do better.

Sir Keir has made some progress in moving his party on from Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, but Mr Corbyn’s Left-wing allies haven’t gone away.

They remain a significant faction among Labour MPS and could become hugely influential in the event of a hung Parliament, or a small Labour majority at Westminster, when Sir Keir will be forced to depend on their support.

The Opposition leader’s great strength is supposed to be his aura of reliability and competence. But Mr Sunak is more than his match in this regard.

In desperation, Labour has sunk into the gutter with ridiculous claims about the Prime Minister’s attitude to sex offenders.the Left knows full well that is untrue but hopes to pull the wool over the eyes of voters.

Labour may find to its cost that voters are not that easily fooled.

Sooner or later, Sir Keir will have to show his hand.