Sunak and Starmer both face rough rides in a by-election week
The two men at the very top of British politics are both facing tricky times. This week could be punishing for Rishi Sunak, with inflation figures on Wednesday and three by-elections on Thursday, which no one really expects the Tories to win.
The Prime Minister and his inner circle are hugely frustrated that his hard work and serious approach to politics have not really improved public perceptions of the Conservative Government.
Sir Keir Starmer, by contrast, is sitting pretty in polling terms with a lead which suggests he is well on course to take over No 10. But questions are growing over what he intends to do with that power if he attains it.
The Labour leader’s approach is to shy away from any spending promises at all, focusing instead on the need to grow the economy and reform public services so that the outcomes seen in recent years – where funding grew and grew but services got worse and worse – are not repeated in future.
Until recently, this meant strategic vagueness about what policies a Starmer government would actually enact. That is now changing. Labour insiders say that, with the party ever more likely to take power and ever more nervous about what could go wrong, it is seeking to be more clear about what can and cannot be achieved.
That explains why Sir Keir has confirmed that he does not intend to scrap the two-child benefits cap, despite knowing he would spark a backlash – not just from the left but from centrist MPs and commentators who view the policy as totemic of the Tories’ overly political approach to benefits.
This raucous internal arguing will continue, and Sir Keir can expect a rough ride. But you would still rather have his problems than Mr Sunak’s.
