What is the reason for the decline of Conservative votes in the British City Council elections?
What effect did the Partygate and the moral scandals have on reducing the popularity of the Conservatives?
The Conservative ruling party’s heavy defeat in the British city council elections has given the opposition political parties more and more hope for the collapse of Boris Johnson’s party in the parliamentary elections and the seizure of power. Thursday’s local council elections in England, Wales and Scotland show the Labor Party winning against the Conservative ruling party.
Increasing Labor Party seats in Parliament
According to published statistics from 4,411 seats in the local council, the Labor Party has managed to win 1,162 seats, which is an increase of 87 seats compared to the previous round. In contrast, the Conservative ruling party lost 131 seats to 515 seats, while the Liberal Democrats, UK’s third-largest party, won 242 seats, for a total of 242 seats.
British dissatisfaction with Boris Johnson’s economic policies
But the most critical point in the election of this period, which is, in fact, a turning point in the political developments of this country, is the success of the Labor Party in gaining control of the Westminster aristocracy and state council. This is the first time that the Conservatives have lost control of the regional board, and this alone shows the dissatisfaction and despair of the affluent sections of society about the turmoil in the economic policies of the Boris Johnson government.
The possibility of early elections
Local elections in the UK, depending on their extent, have always been a criterion for measuring the reaction of public opinion to the political actions of the government and political parties and show a picture of the tendency of the people toward the political situation at home. The fact is that the economic pressures of the Brexit, the Covid-19 epidemic and the new conditions of the Ukraine war, and the moral scandals of the ruling party have increased the likelihood of early elections and the defeat of the Conservative Party but also made it predictable.
Partygate and declining Conservative popularity
Developments in recent weeks, such as Partygate, have severely affected the stability of the Conservative Party. Nearly two weeks ago, members of the UK Parliament voted in favour of a controversial bill to refer the Prime Minister’s misconduct case to the Parliamentary Inquiry Committee. The statement claims that the UK Prime Minister has deceived Parliament by violating health protocols. According to experts, Johnson is in a legal crisis as an abusive prime minister, and public opinion in the UK calls for him to step down. Last week, he apologized again to the deputies and the people in the Parliament but announced that he would not resign. However, the referral of his case to the parliamentary inquiry committee has put his survival in power in a severe crisis.
The moral scandal of conservative representatives
Simultaneously with these developments, reports indicate the moral scandal of several ruling party representatives. Last week, the viewing of pornographic images by a member of the Conservative Party made headlines in the media. Tiverton and Honiton MPs Neil Parish have been charged with viewing obscene images during parliamentary sessions, and an investigation has been launched into the allegations. The Conservative MP claimed that he may have accidentally opened a pornographic video on his cell phone. But the media called his case “Porngate” because of the story of the illegal parties at the Prime Minister’s Office. Parish introduced himself to the Parliament’s disciplinary committee last week but resigned due to public pressure.
Unprecedented recession in the UK
At the same time, the economic situation in the UK is not well defined, and regulators are reporting a dire picture of the country’s financial future. The Bank of England raised interest rates and warned of a record low recession. The monetary policy committee (MPC) of the Bank of England decided on Thursday for the fourth time in a row to raise the interbank interest rate, which two years ago to 0.1 percent, to reduce the economic impact of the Covid-19 outbreak, to 1 percent. In the voting, 3 of the nine members of the committee demanded a further increase of the interbank interest rate to 1.25%, which was not agreed upon. The growth, however, is the highest in 13 years, and the Bank of England has warned that the economy will enter a recession later this year.
A sharp rise in inflation in the UK
Meanwhile, inflation in the UK has risen sharply from 2 per cent to 7 percent last year due to new conditions in the Ukraine war, the Covid-19 epidemic, and the Brexit. Experts warn that inflation will increase further as Ukraine’s war continues and commodity prices rise. In such a situation, the Johnson government has increased taxes by about 30 per cent since last month, and this situation has put a lot of pressure on the people, which has led to its emergence in the local elections.
The British disappointment with Boris Johnson
Adam Hug, Westminster City Council Leader Elect, says the Labor Party victory is a “huge privilege” in the local elections and reflects the conservatives’ frustration. “I think many Conservatives haven’t voted this time, I think they feel alienated from No ten, and that they are, I don’t know, they’ve been disappointed with Boris Johnson and so not voting, and I think that’s made a difference as well,” he added. Labor leader Keir Starmer, meanwhile, said the party’s victory in the election was a “big turning point” in gaining power in Parliament. Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey also said he was increasingly hearing that people were “dissatisfied with Boris Johnson and the Conservative Party as a whole.” He added that the Liberal Democrats could turn the victory of the councils into a parliamentary victory.
From this perspective, what can be deduced from the outcome of the local elections is that public confidence in the Conservative Party has been eroded, even among its traditional supporters, and that it is unlikely that they will be able to hold government until the end of Parliament.
