Star(mer) gazing again

The website Electoral Calculus is currently suggesting Labour at the next general election will have an overall majority of 317 seats—with the Tories on just 100. One could say that if this came to pass, the British electorate will have roared like a lion their disdain for the current state of things. But in inverse proportion to their roar, they will only hear a pitiful squeak from Keir Starmer, who will continue to downgrade expectations in the hope that when in power a couple of minor promises fulfilled will signal that No.10 really is under new management. You might think that with public opinion so firmly against the Tories it would be a good time to propose real change. But no, our mouse of a leader can’t even summon up enough courage to have a walk-on role in a Tom and Jerry cartoon. He squeaks that he can’t promise the investment in public services that is so desperately needed. Climate change will come second to economic growth (but hearing an interview he did this weekend it seems his policy on the growth front is simply to repeat the word ‘growth, growth, growth,’ echoing Blair’s ‘education, education, education.’) He has no plan—sorry, I should say that he does have an idea about devolving powers to the regions, but that, in the light of his power grab of local democracy in the Labour Party rings hollow. He won’t commit to repeal many (or any) of the pernicious laws passed by the Tories. If he had any desire to really change the way things work in the UK he would use his predicted massive majority to embrace in his first parliament electoral reform—to embed a shift to the general ‘progressive’ majority amongst the UK’s voting public. But no, that would demonstrate far sighted leadership, a quality he doesn’t possess. If Starmer does win a landslide it will go to his head. He will tell himself it happened because of him. It will be another disaster, brought on by EHS—Early Hubris Syndrome. God help us.