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Back to the ’90s with Starmer?
KEVIN OVENDEN asks how far parallels can be drawn between Blair’s and Starmer’s Labour Parties and how we should interpret left insurgent ruptures and their underlying processes
Former Prime Minister Tony Blair (left) and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer discuss politics during the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change's Future of Britain Conference in central London, July 18, 2023

IT WAS not only the hammy stage performance by Tony Blair and Keir Starmer this week that summoned up comparisons between now and the run-up to the 1997 general election.

Thursday’s elections did the same, with swings against the Tories reminiscent of the 1993-97 period. That included Uxbridge, despite confounding local factors.

As it was three decades ago, a chunk of voters consolidated of their own accord behind the best placed anti-Tory candidate. Elaborate schemes for tactical voting are redundant.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
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