BORIS HITS THE JACKPOT

Glory, Glory Hallelujah! The Conservatives have won the UK general election with a majority of 80 and the government should be able easily to pass the required legislation and withdraw from the European Union by 31 January 2020. This is an astonishing victory for Boris Johnson who attracted massive support from working-class voters in the Midlands, Wales and the North of England to add to the traditional Tory heartlands in Southern England. The political landscape has amazingly been transformed beyond all recognition.

Boris celebrates a famous victory at No 10

The election campaign itself was curiously uninspiring – the issues were “discussed” in the context of mindless slogans – “Get Brexit done” or “For the Many not the Few”. Boris seems to have been advised to keep a low and cautious profile, checking his natural ebullience and his TV appearances were few and far between. Jeremy Corbyn, Islington’s representative from Agitprop, spouted Leftie nonsense, usually unchallenged by the overwhelmingly anti-Tory media. Jo Swinson of the LibDems tried to make us believe she was in close contention for the office of Prime Minister. Noisy groups snapped at Boris’ heels disparaging Brexit. North of the border, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister of Scotland kept up a steady Anglophobic bile, specifically directed at Boris.

The campaign was thus thoroughly depressing and I confess that in the dark watches of the night I sometimes could not dispel demonic visions of a future Corbynista “re-education camp” or of being trapped in a lift with arch-Remainers John Bercow, Dominic Grieve and Anna Soubry, to awake mercifully in a cold sweat.

But my nocturnal panic was wholly unnecessary. Jeremy (and Jo) turned off the electorate big-time. Labour seats which had stayed loyal to that cause since the days of Clem Attlee and even Ramsay Macdonald dropped to the Tories in droves – the likes of Bassetlaw, Stoke, Redcar, Wrexham and Bolsover. The voters were indignant that their referendum choice of Leave had been ignored for 3 years by the London Establishment and by arrogant Labour, led by a repellent Trotskyite clique. A revolution was taking place – Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive – and it was coming from ordinary patriotic Britons, not from the radical Left.

Of course, Boris’ government faces formidable challenges. After the formal mechanics of Brexit, the UK needs to agree a comprehensive trade deal with the EU – but both sides accept they have a mutual interest in a sensible outcome. We will want to attract inward investment on a large scale, paralysed during the Brexit wrangles, so we need always to be friendly to lawful business. Reunifying our country will involve high public spending on deprived areas – already promised. We will want to strengthen links with friendly allies outside the EU. The position of Scotland, currently run by Independence-obsessed yet well-entrenched Nicola Sturgeon, needs tact and statecraft to return my native country to the Unionist fold. I have every confidence that liberally-minded Boris can grasp all these nettles.

The enemies of promise have been vanquished. Corbyn will soon be dumped but Labour may never recover from this debacle. Jo Swinson has already lost her seat and resigned her leadership, entirely self-inflicted wounds after the LibDems sought to cancel Brexit. The Tory Remainers all failed to be re-elected. Truly we have been delivered from Evil.

Rejoice, Rejoice!

SMD

14.12.19

Text Copyright © Sidney Donald 2019