120 mph…. Really ? There’s an awful lot of work to do yet. For starters the floating voters need convincing Labour can manage the economy. I hear your confidence but I don't think this message board is a good barometer for the rest of the county and I think there’s still a hell of a way to go on that front. Starmer didn’t help last weekend by fudging questions on NHS funding. Saying it will be in Wes’s plan simply won’t cut it for some. The devils in the detail and very soon people will want to see those details if they are going to turn their backs on the Tory’s.
Ok, call it 112mph, for the number of seats Labour are projected to gain, they've gained ~90% of the seats the Tories are projected to lose, I don't ever remember such a turnaround in such a short space of time.
For comparison to the last elections:
Tories had 365 seats, and Labour 202
The one before that 317 v 262
The one before that 330 v 232
The Tories are in reverse, and Labour are projected 314 seats, and that doesn't even really factor for any seats Labour could gain in Scotland (where the Tories have zero chance of gaining any). If Scotland expects a Labour majority in England, then some seats could go to Labour, if they expect a Tory majority then they will dig in with the SNP.
Centrists don't need convincing Labour can manage the economy, as the Tories have fully proven they can absolutely destroy it, in a short space of time, just look where we were with growth in the G7 pre Brexit, and look where we are now, we're battered. We all know that the best way of recovering the economy is to join the SM and CU, but putting this in a manifesto would be a bad idea, as it would put off the brexit voters, they probably wouldn't even realise on their own, but the Tory media will drill it in. We could pay for access to the SM mind, sort of like Norway, which would get by easier.
Most of the people I know across the country are quite centrist, and most have voted Labour, Lib Dem and Tory in the past, but most of them are Labour all the way now, largely due to Tory **** ups but also they don't have to fear Corbyn (which was a misaligned fear, but still happened).
Fudging questions on funding is nothing compared to what else is going on the Tory world, so I think for now Labour just need to stay vague, and provide no ammo. Albeit it's hard for the Tories to shoot when they have both hands on a shovel and are digging a trench.
You're right about the devil being in the detail, but most are not clued up enough to understand the detail, and everyone expects that there's going to be some pain to come, with paying off the pandemic and trying to get growth back on track, the good thing (from a voting point of view) is that growth will likely lag the EU for the next couple of years at least, which should tie in nicely with the election.
Be interesting to see what the Tories don't do when the energy price cap comes off in April, that will be a massive kick in the nuts to them, and then it will get further realised next winter. I feel so sorry for those who are elderly and skint, as their gas bills are going to be bonkers next winter, and the Tories will do nothing about it.