INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Sunak hints he might not quit as Tory leader immediately if he loses general electionRishi Sunak has hinted that he might not quit as Tory
asked if he would stay on if he lost
But he said he would always put himself at the service of his party, implying that he might stay on for a period.Asked if he would remain an
MP for the whole of the next parliament, regardless of the election result, Sunak replied:Yes
I love my constituents, I love serving them
would consider staying on for a few months as leader if he lost the election, Sunak replied:Look my priority is focused on this election
party leaders who lose elections have tended to resign very quickly
But Sunak may come under pressure to stay on for a period to allow the party to have a proper inquest into what went wrong, assuming it
loses badly, and to stop it rushing into a leadership election before it has had time for a period of reflection.After losing to Tony Blair
in 2005, Michael Howard stayed on as Tory leader for about six months to allow the party time to revise the leadership election process and
to enable a new generation of MPs promoted to the shadow cabinet to build a reputation
Tories back into office at the subsequent election.Last week the ConservativeHome website published an article by William Atkinson saying
Tories have discussed urging Sunak to delay the next leadership contest to allow proper time for reflection
Rayner and Nuki said:Last weekend a Zoom meeting attended by a number of candidates and party figures argued for a delay in any leadership
contest to ensure the party does not rush into such a vital decision, though it soon became clear, according to one source, that Mrs
onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureClosing summaryRishi Sunak has hinted that he might not quit as Tory leader immediately if
he loses the election on Thursday
The prime minister did not give a direct answer when asked if he would stay on if he lost
But he told the BBC he would always put himself at the service of his party, implying that he might stay on for a period.Keir Starmer said
defended his claim that Vladimir Putin would welcome a Labour victory in the election
election with delays, human error and Brexit being blamed for missing postal ballot packs in the UK and abroad.Tactical voting and
disaffection with mainstream parties make this 4 July a once-in-a-lifetime general election that could reshape the political landscape for
decades, Ed Davey, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, argued
He said the Lib Dems seemed poised to entrench themselves in a swathe of formerly Conservative territory, particularly in the south.Thank
you for reading and all your comments today
This blog is closing now but you can read all of our politics coverage here.ShareThousands of people fear they will be unable to vote in the
general election with delays, human error and Brexit being blamed for missing postal ballot packs in the UK and abroad.Clarissa Killwick, a
to courier their ballot back to the UK.Vienna-based Michael Goldrei said Hackney council in London told him his pack had been posted on 17
June but he started to panic when it had not arrived a week later
It eventually arrived on 26 June
further escalate the war in Ukraine.Speaking at a Conservative campaign event, Gullis said:The leader of the Labour party, who is literally
with his illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine.Starmer told Virgin Radio this morning (see post at 11.20) that he intends to finish work
at 6pm on Fridays to spend time with his family, adding that protecting time to spend with his son and daughter made him more relaxed and a
A senior Lib Dems source has told Tom Symonds, a BBC home affairs correspondent, that the party could win more than 26 new seats, beating
its previous record at the 1997 general election.He has this report from the Liberal Democrat campaign bus:Although the Lib Dems had 15 MPs
in the last parliament, boundary changes at this election reduces that number to eight.Winning 26 seats on Thursday would make 34 but some
persuaded to change their allegiance for tactical reasons.Another big source of Lib Dem votes used to be Remainers
And sewage.Which is why, in between the stunts, Davey talks endlessly to reporters about the NHS, social care, and clean water.ShareUpdated
as the largest in the final round of voting next Sunday.The Labour leader was asked if he was concerned that a victory for Le Pen would
election assembly:For too long, the people running our country have not just had the wrong ideas but the wrong priorities too
The basic things in life that we all need.Standing in front of you today I am under no illusion about the mountain we have to climb
But I take comfort in knowing I am one voice in a movement
rejoin the Labour party if electedFaiza Shaheen, the candidate blocked by Labour from standing in Chingford and Woodford Green, is standing
as an independent in the north-east London seat.Shaheen, who is seen to be on the left of the Labour party, stood in the seat in 2019, but
was beaten by 1,262 votes by Iain Duncan Smith
She has been speaking with the Times Radio journalist John Pienaar
To be honest, I think having an independent voice, given that there is going to be this huge majority Labour government and given how the
Labour leadership is very strict about what they say and the treatment of anyone vaguely seen to be going against those lines, I think we
will need an independent voice
And honestly the way I was treated and the lack of regard I have to have enough self-respect to say no.Pienaar then put it to Shaheen, an
Smith, a former Conservative secretary of state for work and pensions, to cling on to the seat, which he has represented since its creation
in 1997.Shaheen said she had thought about the potential of splitting the vote a lot, which made her hesitant to run as an independent
But she was urged to run as an independent candidate by people in the local community, and believes, unlike many other independent
Labour government, we are going to get a majority government
This is about having a local voice that will stand up with Labour at times and at other times push them to be more progressive and be a
Labour after liking a series of posts on X that allegedly downplayed antisemitism allegations
welcome in the candidate club
Conservatives remain in power after the general election, while 15% of respondents said they would definitely quit.Find Out Now, which
conducted the survey, interviewed 1,025 NHS employees on 25 June and 26.Labour has promised to clear the NHS waiting list backlog in England
within five years.The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, told the Guardian that in another Conservative term the total waiting list in
England could grow to 10m cases, with healthcare becoming as degraded as NHS dental services.There are over 110,000 vacancies in the NHS
SheffieldTwice as many Britons support tax increases to pay for public services as those who believe they should be reduced even if it means
further public service cuts, according to new a report.A study released by abrdn Financial Fairness Trust, a research body set up by the
five (39%) of households now classed as having serious financial difficulties
The number of households with finances in distress has increased by 2.9 million since the last election in 2019, when 28% were in that
situation.About a third of the 5,572 people surveyed said they supported raising their taxes if it benefited other people with more hours of
free childcare, cheaper energy tariffs for lower-income households and an increase in child benefit.ShareThe Conservative candidate
challenging Nigel Farage, the Reform UK party leader, in Clacton on 4 July has described the atmosphere at Reform UK rallies in an interview
with PoliticsHome.Giles Watling, who has been the MP for the Essex seat since 2017 (and was re-elected in the December 2019 general election
things to Nigel Farage himself but the method, the process is just sort of reminiscent of the big rallies at Nuremberg with people standing
Guardian informed the party he had been on a list of members of the BNP.In another incident, earlier last month, Grant StClair-Armstrong,
SparrowRory Stewart was a cabinet minister for about three months, made an unsuccessful bid for the Conservative party leader and now has
podcast, the Rest is Politics
The other host is Alastair Campbell.The podcast is regarded as gospel in centrist dad circles and Stewart and Campbell broadly agree on
But Campbell has failed to persuade Stewart to get excited about the prospect of a Labour government
He explained:They [Labour] think that the problem is that the Tories screwed up the country because they were nasty people who were out of
work beyond 6pm if he becomes prime minister
This seems to be a misunderstanding based on Starmer telling Virgin Radio earlier (see 11.20am) that if he became PM, he would protect
interview, Rishi Sunak was asked by Chris Mason if he had an equivalent of the Jude Bellingham kick that might rescue the match for the
Sunak replied with a reference to his favourite game, cricket
He said:Mine is probably more a kind of flashy, cover drive or off drive, or something instead, but there we go.Look, it is not over till
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
