PM’s idea to avoid a poll horror? An Election at Halloween

RISHI SUNAK is planning to delay holding the next General Election until Halloween 2024 – in an attempt to avoid a horror show on polling day, sources have told The Mail on Sunday.

With surveys showing the Conservatives trailing Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour by 20 points, Tory strategists have pencilled in October 31 next year as the most likely date for the Election – enough time for the economy to pick up, but not so late as to look desperate. The last possible date for an election is January 28, 2025.

Mr Sunak’s advisers are also plotting a pre-Christmas reshuffle to promote young talent such as Pensions Minister Laura Trott, pictured, to become one of the ‘faces’ of the party in the media in the run-up to polling day.

Although No10 is understood to have their ‘frustrations’ with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, the advisers accept that he cannot be moved until after the spring Budget at the earliest.

Despite Labour’s commanding lead in the polls, ministers have been told by Isaac Levido, the party’s election strategist, that with a fifth of voters remaining undecided, the election is still winnable.

Mr Sunak’s hopes are pinned on bringing inflation down – he has pledged to reduce it from 6.7 per cent to 5.3 per cent or lower by the end of the year – and then, with the public finances in better shape, announcing pre-election tax cuts in the Budget. The Supreme Court’s ruling on his plan to send migrants to Rwanda, which is expected before Christmas, would also help to set the political weather.

While long-serving ministers such as Environment Secretary Therese Coffey are expected to make way for new faces in the reshuffle, No 10 remains in a dilemma about Mr Hunt.

A source said: ‘It is not a good look for Tory prime ministers to keep sacking their chancellors – Liz Truss axed Kwasi Kwarteng from the Treasury last year and appointed Mr Hunt in a doomed attempt to save her premiership – but Jeremy was not Rishi’s choice, he inherited him. ‘Although it’s true that Jeremy is implementing Rishi’s cautious economic policies, the feeling in No10 is that they could do with someone more creative, in the way that George Osborne performed the role. There are frustrations. They don’t have the bandwidth to micro-manage the Treasury. But nor do they have enough political capital for a radical reshuffle which leaves enemies on the backbenches.’ Another Tory source said: ‘Isaac has made it clear to us that it is going to be tough, but the Labour lead is softer than people realise.

‘We have a year. It is not yet lost.’