Update: 05/06/2024


** 29 days to go - Here’s what you need to know.
------------------------------------------------------------

The first general election debate on iTV concluded yesterday, with polls indicating that the public favoured Keir Starmer (44%) over Rishi Sunak (39%). Notably, it’s a much narrower lead for Labour than we see in the voting intention polls. Nevertheless, Starmer was still seen as the winner on key issues ([link removed]) from immigration (45%) to public services (63%) to the cost of living (52%).

The big story from the debate is that Sunak allegedly misrepresented ([link removed]) Labour’s fiscal plans, falsely accusing Starmer of wanting to raise taxes by £2000/year. Permanent secretary to the Treasury James Bowler asked in a letter this morning that Conservative ministers not associate the claims with the civil service (as Sunak did last night). It was yet another sign of the post-truth politics we live in under FPTP, the “winner takes-all” mentality creating a political system of “win-at-all-costs.”

A few other key things stood out to us about this debate. Firstly, as we’ve mentioned before, the absence of the other party leaders shows that the media has completely eschewed pluralism in favour of a two-party “presidential” politics. It’s now been reported that the BBC will finally host a proper 7-way debate in the coming weeks.

Secondly, the the debate called for 45 second rapid-fire responses from the two candidates, even when the questions were nuanced and complicated. Instead of fostering a real in-depth discussion about Britain’s future – and how to contend with the challenges we face – we were served quips, soundbites, and name-calling.

Lastly, democracy issues did not arise once in the debate yesterday. In part that’s on the ITV staff who prepared the questions, but it signals that the concept of increased inclusivity and fairness in our politics is simply not on the radar in our political or media establishment. Despite the fact that trust in politics is at an all time low, democratic reform is not something that, so far in this election, has even been seen as worth discussing.

Elsewhere in the news:
* A new report has shown that, as a result of Brexit-related red tape at the border, UK clothing sales have plummeted. It will be interesting to see how that plays out in arch-Brexiteer Nigel Farage’s campaign in Clacton.
* Speaking of Farage, the new candidate for Clacton had a milkshake tossed on him his first day of campaigning. It would be easy to say that someone so divisive deserves everything he gets but incidents like this only serve to fuel his ‘victim’ narrative and could take British politics down a road we don’t want to go.
* Lib Dem leader Ed Davey has been fined £100 for a speeding incident on the M1 – so it seems it’s only his election campaign that’s stuck in first gear! 😉

That’s it for today. See you tomorrow!

All the best,

The Open Britain Team
CHIP IN TO SUPPORT OUR WORK ([link removed])

View email in browser ([link removed])
Open Britain . Orion House . 14 Barn Hill . Stamford, PE9 2AE . United Kingdom
update your preferences ([link removed]) or unsubscribe ([link removed])