Spewing promises she’ll break and displaying ambition unmatched by ability, Liz Truss is the Conservative Prime Minister who Labour want to face.
The Poundshop Thatcher ahead of rival Rishi Sunak in the Conservative Party race to be gifted No 10’s keys is considered very beatable in a General Election joined by the 99.8% excluded from the Tory circus.
Many of the scathing attack lines are provided by her Conservative colleagues, including Sunak’s denunciation of “fairytale” £30-billion tax cuts with most of the money destined for corporate coffers.
“The Conservative cult is having another Iain Duncan Smith moment and picking who they want instead of who the country might prefer,” observed a Labour Shadow Cabinet member recalling 2001 when publicly more popular Ken Clarke was rejected.
“Then they were in opposition and stayed there another nine years partly because of that choice.
“This time they’re arrogant and myopic in power and will regret a short-sighted decision.”
The “Labour for Liz” campaign is braced for a Tory bounce in the polls if the front-runner is declared Tory leader on 5 September and replaces Boris Johnson in Downing Street the following day.
The lift may be temporary so Truss calling an early General Election would be bold when she could cling to office until January 2025.
With the economy tanking under the Tories and only sanctioned Russia predicted to do worse next year, Truss might be tempted to dash to the polls before her pledges prove false or disastrous.
Starmer’s expected to urge Labour MPs and activists to be ready to rally support when his own leadership’s under the spotlight.
But Labour strategists are confident he can be presented as a steady, reassuring PM-in-waiting promising Britain will be better and she’ll lack legitimacy and authority.
Brexit would also be a disarmed weapon by Truss when she like Starmer advocated Remain in the 2016 referendum.
Johnson trounced Jeremy Corbyn but Truss will not repeat that act against Starmer.
The Tories replacing a once popular incompetent fantasist with a little known incompetent fantasist would be a bonus for Labour.
