- Written by Sam Francis
- BBC News political reporter
Rishi Sunak has dismissed calls for a change of direction after a poor local election result, insisting he can make “progress” with voters before the general election.
The Prime Minister said for the first time since the full scale of the Conservative Party’s losses became clear that it was “deeply disappointing” to have lost 470 MPs.
The Conservative Party is licking its wounds after a series of defeats in local elections. After the final votes were counted on Sunday, the Conservatives lost control of 10 councils, more than 470 seats and totemically lost West Midlands Mayor Andy Street.
The party has also lost 10 police and crime commissioners to Labor, a potentially significant blow to the Conservatives if they aim to put law and order at the heart of the next general election.
Mr Sunak appeared to admit for the first time that his party was on track to lose its majority, saying local election results “suggest that Labor will be the largest party and heading for a hung parliament”.
His comments echoed analysis by prominent spiritualist Professor Michael Thrasher, writing for Sky News, which suggested Labor would win 294 seats in the general election.
This prediction, which has been dismissed by some pollsters, used local election results to predict national vote share in the general election.
Mr Sunak told the Times: ‘Keir Starmer, supported in Downing Street by the SNP, Liberal Democrats and Greens, would be a disaster for Britain.
“This country needs action, not political gamesmanship. We are the only party with a plan to deliver on the people’s priorities.
“I know the last few years have been difficult and I understand why people are frustrated.
“It is of course very disappointing to lose a good Conservative councilor and a wonderful mayor like Andy Street, who has contributed so much to the West Midlands.
“There is work to be done and we must make further progress. I am determined to come together as a party and show the British people that we are committed.”
Labor has denied it plans to join forces with other parties to form a government in the next general election, expected in the second half of this year.
Speaking to Laura Kuenssberg on BBC Sunday, Labour’s election co-ordinator Pat McFadden said there was a “sense of confidence” that Labor could win.
He hailed the party’s “astounding” election results, particularly its victory in the West Midlands mayoral race, which he said was “beyond expectations”.
“When people look at the Labor Party today, they can see that the Labor Party is different compared to a few years ago,” Mr McFadden said.
“Labour is passing the key trust test that voters want.”
Former Home Secretary Suela Braverman said in a speech on Sunday that Mr Sunak’s plan was “not working”.
“There’s no hiding the fact that it was a terrible election result for the Conservatives,” Braverman told the BBC.
Mr Sunak added that he needed to “pivot” to more right-wing policies to win back “striking” Tory voters.
Mr Braverman, a frequent critic of the prime minister, did not call for Mr Sunak to be replaced, insisting it would be “impossible” to replace the leader so close to a general election.
Braverman is one of several conservatives advocating for a shift to the right in light of the difficult results in local elections.
Miriam Cates, co-chair of the New Conservative Party group, which is made up of most of the Red Cliff MPs who joined the party in 2019, said the party was trying to avoid “the abyss” by “doubling down on patriotism”. “We need to provide national security,” he said.
Writing in the Telegraph, Mr Cates called on Mr Sunak to ignore policies that “serve international elites” and instead focus on significantly reducing immigration and reforming planning law to boost housing construction.
Sir David Frost, the former chief Brexit negotiator, said he believed it was “too late” to save the Conservative Party from “electoral defeat at the next general election”.
Lord Frost insisted Mr Sunak needed to deliver “further tax cuts, further spending cuts” and “a serious attack on net-zero payments” to save the party.
Damian Green, chairman of the One Nation Group, a group of influential Conservative Party MPs, said: “It’s irrational in front of voters to say that what we need to do is move to the right.” Stated.
The former first secretary told BBC Radio 4’s Westminster Hour: “I just want to look at the seats we’ve lost in the last few days. We’ve lost to parties on the left.”
Conservative Party chairman Richard Holden told the same program that voters wanted the Conservative Party to set out a “clear vision for the country”.
“We would like to see lower taxes, but it will be done in a sustainable way,” he said.
“I think it’s selfish for us to talk to ourselves or talk about ourselves at this point. Whenever I go to the door, I agree with what other people are talking about, but people… What do you want to see? [the Conservative Party] Providing a clear vision for the country. I think we’ve seen a lot from the Prime Minister in the last few days. Further welfare reform, building on the universal credit changes that fundamentally changed the way welfare works in this county, and encouraging people to work. This has happened over the past 14 years, but we need to go further. ”
