FRESH small boat fury has handed a gift to Nigel Farage as he looks to steamroller Labour and the Tories in this week’s local elections.
Hundreds of council seats are up for grabs along with a handful of prized mayoralties and the all-important Runcorn by-election.
GettyNigel Farage is set to be the big winner on Thursday[/caption]
GettySmall boat arrivals have passed 10,000 for this year[/caption]
GettySir Keir Starmer visiting an NHS hospital on the campaign trail this morning[/caption]
Kemi Badenoch is poised to lose up to 450 Conservative councillors as the party plummets from the high point last time these contests were fought in Boris Johnson’s prime.
Sir Keir Starmer is not expected to build on his landslide gains at last summer’s general election, and could even go backwards.
Pollsters expect Reform UK to be the big winner, hoovering up as much as 450 council seats and possibly adding to their MP tally in Runcorn.
Just three days out from Thursday’s ballots, Mr Farage seized on the number of Channel crossings surpassing 10,000 this year to shift the debate onto illegal immigration.
He warned the influx was “coming to a town near you” amid reports ministers are offering to pay landlords to house migrants.
The Brexiteer said: “Let me tell you, with the tens of thousands that are going to come this year, one of those residences will be very close to you.
“It is wrong, it is unfair, it is totally out of control. Keir Starmer said he’d smash the gangs, well he’s failed completely and utterly.”
Some 247 small boat arrivals yesterday pushed official figures to 9,885 for the year so far, with the number due to go into five figures tomorrow when today’s crossings are confirmed.
Immigration is the most pressing issue for 56 per cent of Reform voters and 40 per cent of Tory supporters, according to Ipsos Mori. It does not feature in Labour voters’ top five issues.
Reform are the bookies’ pick to win the by-election in Runcorn – one of Labour’s safest seats – following the resignation of MP Mike Amesbury for punching a constituent.
Betfair has Mr Farage as the 1/2 favourite to win, with Labour trailing on 2/1. Both leave the Tories for dust on a miracle 719/1.
Top pollster Lord Hayward forecasts the right-wing insurgents to hoover up between 400 to 450 council seats largely in the Midlands and the North.
He reckons the Tories will land on around 375-435 councillors – down around 475-525 from 2021 when these sets of elections were last contested under the Covid vaccine bounce.
Labour are predicted to bag 280 seats, which is essentially no change although they would have hoped to have won some of the seats expected to fall to Reform.
The Lib Dems are due to be the other big winners with between 70-80 gains, as well as the Greens taking up to 20-40.
Despite the Tories admitting they are in for a tough night, they also tried to turn the screw on Labour’s immigration woes.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said today: “Britain’s borders are being torn apart under Labour. This year is already the worst on record for small boat crossings after over 10,000 illegal immigrants arrived in Britain, but Labour just sit on their hands.
“Labour scrapped our deterrent before it even started, flung open the door to extremists and criminals, and handed the bill to hardworking taxpayers.”
Sir Keir hit back: “This is a serious problem, the last government lost control of our borders and it falls to us now to clear up their mess.
“I’m absolutely convinced we have to take on the gangs that are putting people into boats in the first place.”
PAConservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch drives a tractor on the campaign trail[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
