Theresa May’s April 18 gamble to call a snap election looks to have been a very bad call indeed. She wanted to enhance the small majority that David Cameron had won in the 2015 election, and she especially campaigned on the Brexit vote. But the Conservative Party will be in with a reduced majority and a hung Parliament. There were 650 seats up for grabs, so 326 seats are needed for an absolute majority.
With most seat results in, the Conservatives now have 314 seats (a loss of around a dozen seats) and Labour has 261 seats (a gain of around 30 seats). Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn upped his vote (from 30,000 to 40,000 votes), while May stayed much the same (38,000 votes, a slight bit down from the previous election).
Another result of the election is a return to two-party politics. Labour and the Conservatives have won the clear bulk of the seats. The Conservatives won around 48 per cent of the vote while Labour won around 40 per cent of the total vote. The next highest vote was around 5 per cent for the leftist Scottish National Party.
This is followed by the Liberal Democrats with just under two per cent, and the Democratic Unionist Party with around 1.5 per cent. Sinn Fein got one per cent of the vote. So the smaller parties have made no gains and/or done quite poorly.
The SNP was a major loser: it lost 20 seats, down to 35 seats, while the Conservatives did quite well in Scotland, picking up a dozen seats. The Liberal Democrats continue to languish with just 12 seats, with even its former leader Nick Clegg losing his seat. The conservative UKIP has gained no ground and its vote went down. The Greens gained no ground either.
As a result of all this Theresa May will now have to fight to save her position as leader. And another general election may still be held within a year. All this is bad news for the Conservatives as the public is just not all that keen on multiple elections, especially early elections. Those who call them tend to get punished.
There are now many unanswered questions. To have the Conservative Party stay with a working majority position they may well have to form government with the conservative Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland (who have 10 seats), founded by Ian Paisley.
Conservative angst with May will continue to grow. How long she remains as leader is a moot point. So a period of instability looks to be the immediate future for the ruling party. Meanwhile Corbyn will now much more easily retain his leadership of the Labour Party. His radicalism was a cause of concern for many, with various challengers on offer. But now his position is much more secure.
The UK as a whole will also be insecure. Some things will remain the same. The Conservatives will continue to rule, and its close ongoing pro-US relations will stay. Had the radically anti-US Corbyn got in, it would have been a much different story.
But a shaky Conservative Party may spend some time with political infighting and leadership changes. Had an early election not been called, May could have stayed on to 2020 with her majority, but now it is not at all clear how long she will be in charge.
Other Conservative leadership challengers include Boris Johnson, Michael Fallon, Amber Rudd, and David Davis. While Corbyn has called on May to resign, she shows no signs of doing so – at least for now. But the pressure will certainly be on.
And conducting the Brexit negotiations (to begin June 19), is now going to be quite difficult. That was one of the main reasons May went with an early election, hoping a larger majority would make all this much easier to deal with. Now it will likely be a very cumbersome process indeed.
So it looks like the UK, along with Europe, will be in a time of instability for the foreseeable future. David Cameron’s referendum on Brexit backfired and failed, and May’s hopes of strengthening Brexit has failed as well. It appears that many of the Labour voters who went with Brexit have now returned to their Labour fold.
So instability, volatility and unpredictability seem to characterise the UK and the UK electorate at the moment. Which way things will go in the days ahead is now anyone’s guess. With both stealth jihad and actual bloody jihad on the increase in the UK a shaky leadership will be bad news indeed.
And the fact that the hard-left socialist and anti-Semite Corbyn came so close to taking power is a very big worry as well. The UK electorate is asking for, and will be getting, trouble if it continues along these lines. And as always, I cannot omit the spiritual dynamic in all this.
As secularism rises and the Christian faith declines, things will simply get worse there. Indeed, as I recently wrote, leftist secularism will be no match for raging Islam: https://billmuehlenberg.com/2017/05/29/faithless-uk-resurgent-islam-perfect-storm/
Prayers are needed for this once great land. Its future looks very shaky indeed.
Do you really think that May did this in hope of strengthening Brexit, and actually believed the rhetoric about the conservatives having a landslide, especially after the lengths that anti-Brexit forces have gone to to reverse or delay the process? Didn’t you think that the drawing out of Brexit and then the timing of a snap election was too much of a coincidence? May has always looked like a bureaucratic plant to me, and it wouldn’t surprise me if we never see Brexit. Watch for more movement on reversing Brexit now. I’d be very happy if I’m proven wrong.
I sent this message to my homosexual MP for Bournemouth, who though winning outright did not gain as many extra votes as did the Labour party, during last night’s election:
Dear Conor
Well, there you go,
We met in Eldon Road, whilst you were canvassing and I said that I had listened to Jeremy Corbyn on the TV the previous night and how well he came across, especially with his reiteration of his listening to people.
I tried to warn you and your party that they do not listen to what people are saying and that you are giving Corbyn an open goal. But like Zombies you all marched on with “bananas” stuffed in your ears, with one of your henchmen shouldering me off the pavement and into the road, as I was attempting to talk to a lady, who seemed to be the only one listening. I forget nothing.
Indeed what I experienced in my own road is but a picture of people being silenced by the arrogance of politicians just like yourself.
The lady manning the telephone at the West Bournemouth Conservative HQ, at Hankinson Road, also came across as a classic, rude and arrogant, just wanting to stem roller anyone who disagreed with her into silence.
So much for democracy.
Indeed the voices of millions of ordinary dads and mums, those who actually produce the next generation are never heard. The state has taken control of the children, by-passing parents and placing them in the hands of Muslims and homosexuals.
Welcome your to your own oppression Conor, for believe me you are opening the door to Marxists who using Muslims and gays like yourself as useful idiots, are busy destroying Christian marriage, the family, the Church and the nation. And once they have achieved their final objective, you will no longer serve any further purpose.
But you can neither hear nor see what I am talking about.
David Skinner UK
Thank you Bill. The West is becoming more politically unstable as you say. As to how the vote went against Mrs May; Melanie Phillips early on pointed to her politically suicidal announcement that she would “asset strip the houses of the elderly to make them pay for domiciliary care.” But of particular interest to me was Phillips’ opinion that the younger population would support Corbyn, though they didn’t usually turn out to vote in large numbers. Gerard Henderson, in Thursday’s Australian put it this way: young people, “in a kind of blind ignorance of history and the world induced by the wretched fashions of contemporary pedagogy and the neurotic narrowness of the digital silos in which they live their screen-based lives,” are Corbyn’s most enthusiastic supporters. Well it seems they did turn out in force, to quote Phillips again: “The reason Labour has done so well is that for once young people turned out to vote. Young people generally don’t bother to vote. They did this time for one reason: they were captivated and energised by Jeremy Corbyn.” As you say, the rise in secularism seems inevitable. I think we have just about reached the point where the rising generation in the West–victims of the ‘long march’ and its capture of our educational institutions–is tipping the balance permanently toward the left, as perhaps evidenced by the extraordinary reactions to Brexit and Trump’s victory in the US. Prayer for Britain, prayer for our own nation and the West as a whole is desperately needed. We are commanded to “watch” and pray, which to me includes understanding the times in which we live and there is a crying need for Christians–our young people in particular– to be thoroughly grounded in the biblical faith whilst also being informed and taught to think clearly about the cultural currents that are swirling around them and threatening to engulf their world.
Teresa May, when she was the Home Secretary, in 2010 trotted out the following mantras whilst speaking at an event hosted by Stonewall. She spoke about how incredibly proud that she and the Home Office were, to have come top of 2010’s Stonewall Workplace Equality Index:
“I think that shows how far we, as a society, we have come…..As a country we have come a long way….as a party, my own party, the Conservatives have come a long way. We now have more openly gay MPs and openly gay ministers than ever before [1]….We’ve come a long way……despite the real progress we have seen in recent years, there is much still to do….despite the real progress we have seen in recent years, there is much still to do…..And we will go further…We are committed to taking action to tear down these barriers….” [2].
In 2013 she spoke on the gay web site, Out4Marriage. Bearing in mind that she is the daughter of a Church of England vicar , one cannot help but be struck by her tormented and shifty look [3] .
Finally we hear her abject prostration before Islam [4]
Britain is caught between militant and radicalising Mohammedanism and Sodommedanism,, both manipulated and guided by multi -culturalists aka Marxists [5]. All have one objective which is, as Teresa May says, to tear down the barriers – protecting marriage, the family, the nation and the Church.
Whether we like it or not we are caught in the toils of Marxist European Union from which there is no escape.
Thanks David. Yes, sadly this is true of much of the West. Here in Australia for example many of the state and federal Liberal Party (conservative) leaders are no better than the Labor Party (leftist) leaders.
The true face of Teresa May came out some years ago when she appeared on the BBC 1 Question Time.
She was asked why she had changed her mind on gay adoption and transgender equality? The audience were clearly amused by her ducking and diving but were not taken in, even if she is by her own dissembling. What is noticeable is her hardened, and stiff-necked expression. [1] We must also not forget that she appointed a lesbian, Justine Greening to the be Secretary of State for Education who is determined to bring in compulsory sex education for four year old children. Like Teresa May she had voted to remain part of Soviet European Union [2]
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peAmygbh7CQ
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4WvEDcWao4
Yes David it is the same here. We seldom have quality conservative leaders to stand against the left. Our last federal election had Turnbull (Liberals) vs Shorten (Labor). Good grief: Tweedle-dum vs Tweedle-dee. We lose either way. It sure can get discouraging.
One of the striking results of the UK election is the deep divide that now exists. We now see young versus old and north versus south – as well as pro-Brexit and Remain.
I thought one of the more interesting speeches during the night (here in the UK) was that of Nick Clegg, the defeated ex-leader of the Liberal-Democrats. In alluding to these deep divisions, he talked about the need to ‘come together’ – but then that is merely a euphemism for the need for us all to move left and embrace ‘tolerance’ – when of course those advocating such a position are the least tolerant to Christian views and values.
Yes, while Theresa May obviously had her reasons to call another election, it’s not the best outcome by a long shot. Voter fatigue must be running high in the UK, and was no doubt responsible for this outcome. And now with Brexit negotiations demanding clear and level-headed thinking unhindered by political division, the immediate future is looking grim. Moreover, the fiery and often outspoken Corbyn may well have an unsettling effect on the UK at a time when serious decisions need to be made by those in power.
Bill, I am right now in the UK and couldn’t have said it better than you. Thanks for a great blog.
Theresa May’s new ally in government, Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist party, is in favour of a soft Brexit, wishes to maintain a porous border with the Irish republic but also holds illiberal positions on abortion and gay rights. (!)
Yes the conservative, pro-family and pro-life DUP is about the only thing that can save May, politically speaking.
Roger Birch you mean move towards the collective as described by the lesbian, anarchist and Marxist Angela Mason.
David Skinner UK
Looks like Theresa May has done a Malcolm Turnbull. Whether their polling is correct and conservatives actually need to move away from truth and morality and embrace the deception of the age to get elected I don’t know for sure but it doesn’t seem to be correct and it does not seem to do them much good. It certainly does not give the impression of being trustworthy. May appears to have essentially lost the election because of her previous support for wrong policies, not despite them and we are presented with yet another case of democracy becoming increasingly dysfunctional. We, once again in world politics, have a government that both cannot show well the evils of wrong policy as Labour would have done but is incapable of doing good. This seems to be a trend. We boil the frog slowly.
@Alec
“The reason Labour has done so well is that for once young people turned out to vote. Young people generally don’t bother to vote. They did this time for one reason: they were captivated and energised by Jeremy Corbyn.”
Something similar happened around half a century ago and it was not a pleasant experience: China’s destructive Cultural Revolution, which was spearheaded by the Red Guards. The Red Guards was mostly a youth and student movement who idolised Mao Tse Tung , which apparently is quite similar from what I hear to the current British youth’s infatuation with Corbyn.
Hmm… “conservative, pro-family and pro-life” – it’s beginning to sound as though you could do a lot worse than join forces with the DUP, despite the somewhat fiery nature of Northern Ireland!! Surely a pro-life stance is of more immediate benefit to our planet than the somewhat dubious climate change agenda! And as for Jeremy Corbyn, who is both left wing and strongly anti-semitic…. almost anything is preferable to that!
Thanks Ann. Yes, and the DUP are critical of climate alarmism as well!
After living for 40 years in the UK, I left England for Australia after marrying an Australian. That was 35 years ago. We went back in 1996 and enjoyed a month catching up with friends and the church we were part of for 10 years.
I went back in 2006 for a month for the churches 50th anniversary and to check out the state of play there generally.
I sensed that things were going downhill very quickly and there was a darkness and gloom over the nation. I was glad to leave and will never go back again.
In the 60s and 70s, the national church of all persuasions had a mini revival as the charismatic experience hit town. it was a time of refreshing and renewal. In 2006, there was no sign of it anywhere.
I guess the vibrancy of the renewal have been subsumed by secularism (read homosexuality) and Islam. The choice was to stand firm (for truth) or go under (and follow the ways of the world).
Whilst there are churches that have stood firm, too many have gone under. A vacuum does not stay a vacuum for very long.
I am furious about the election result. Corbyn promised people the earth, as usual, with no explanations as to how it would be paid for. There is one issue re the youngsters in England…university fees…they have to pay while the Scots go free and the Welsh get some discounts. A blindingly stupid issue that politicians have refused to deal with. I think this played a sizeable part in their voting choice. But May…the country is being stitched up and I hate to think where it’s heading. It needs The Lord like never before.
Do you really think that May did this in hope of strengthening Brexit, and actually believed the rhetoric about the conservatives having a landslide, especially after the lengths that anti-Brexit forces have gone to to reverse or delay the process? Didn’t you think that the drawing out of Brexit and then the timing of a snap election was too much of a coincidence? May has always looked like a bureaucratic plant to me, and it wouldn’t surprise me if we never see Brexit. Watch for more movement on reversing Brexit now. I’d be very happy if I’m proven wrong.
I sent this message to my homosexual MP for Bournemouth, who though winning outright did not gain as many extra votes as did the Labour party, during last night’s election:
Dear Conor
Well, there you go,
We met in Eldon Road, whilst you were canvassing and I said that I had listened to Jeremy Corbyn on the TV the previous night and how well he came across, especially with his reiteration of his listening to people.
I tried to warn you and your party that they do not listen to what people are saying and that you are giving Corbyn an open goal. But like Zombies you all marched on with “bananas” stuffed in your ears, with one of your henchmen shouldering me off the pavement and into the road, as I was attempting to talk to a lady, who seemed to be the only one listening. I forget nothing.
Indeed what I experienced in my own road is but a picture of people being silenced by the arrogance of politicians just like yourself.
The lady manning the telephone at the West Bournemouth Conservative HQ, at Hankinson Road, also came across as a classic, rude and arrogant, just wanting to stem roller anyone who disagreed with her into silence.
So much for democracy.
Indeed the voices of millions of ordinary dads and mums, those who actually produce the next generation are never heard. The state has taken control of the children, by-passing parents and placing them in the hands of Muslims and homosexuals.
Welcome your to your own oppression Conor, for believe me you are opening the door to Marxists who using Muslims and gays like yourself as useful idiots, are busy destroying Christian marriage, the family, the Church and the nation. And once they have achieved their final objective, you will no longer serve any further purpose.
But you can neither hear nor see what I am talking about.
David Skinner UK
Thank you Bill. The West is becoming more politically unstable as you say. As to how the vote went against Mrs May; Melanie Phillips early on pointed to her politically suicidal announcement that she would “asset strip the houses of the elderly to make them pay for domiciliary care.” But of particular interest to me was Phillips’ opinion that the younger population would support Corbyn, though they didn’t usually turn out to vote in large numbers. Gerard Henderson, in Thursday’s Australian put it this way: young people, “in a kind of blind ignorance of history and the world induced by the wretched fashions of contemporary pedagogy and the neurotic narrowness of the digital silos in which they live their screen-based lives,” are Corbyn’s most enthusiastic supporters. Well it seems they did turn out in force, to quote Phillips again: “The reason Labour has done so well is that for once young people turned out to vote. Young people generally don’t bother to vote. They did this time for one reason: they were captivated and energised by Jeremy Corbyn.” As you say, the rise in secularism seems inevitable. I think we have just about reached the point where the rising generation in the West–victims of the ‘long march’ and its capture of our educational institutions–is tipping the balance permanently toward the left, as perhaps evidenced by the extraordinary reactions to Brexit and Trump’s victory in the US. Prayer for Britain, prayer for our own nation and the West as a whole is desperately needed. We are commanded to “watch” and pray, which to me includes understanding the times in which we live and there is a crying need for Christians–our young people in particular– to be thoroughly grounded in the biblical faith whilst also being informed and taught to think clearly about the cultural currents that are swirling around them and threatening to engulf their world.
Teresa May, when she was the Home Secretary, in 2010 trotted out the following mantras whilst speaking at an event hosted by Stonewall. She spoke about how incredibly proud that she and the Home Office were, to have come top of 2010’s Stonewall Workplace Equality Index:
“I think that shows how far we, as a society, we have come…..As a country we have come a long way….as a party, my own party, the Conservatives have come a long way. We now have more openly gay MPs and openly gay ministers than ever before [1]….We’ve come a long way……despite the real progress we have seen in recent years, there is much still to do….despite the real progress we have seen in recent years, there is much still to do…..And we will go further…We are committed to taking action to tear down these barriers….” [2].
In 2013 she spoke on the gay web site, Out4Marriage. Bearing in mind that she is the daughter of a Church of England vicar , one cannot help but be struck by her tormented and shifty look [3] .
Finally we hear her abject prostration before Islam [4]
Britain is caught between militant and radicalising Mohammedanism and Sodommedanism,, both manipulated and guided by multi -culturalists aka Marxists [5]. All have one objective which is, as Teresa May says, to tear down the barriers – protecting marriage, the family, the nation and the Church.
Whether we like it or not we are caught in the toils of Marxist European Union from which there is no escape.
[1] http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/uk-has-highest-number-lgbt-politicians-world-full-list-westminsters-gay-mps-1545270
[2] http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2011/03/20/speech-british-home-secretary-promises-progress-on-full-gay-marriage-equality/
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTsXoNkiY3g
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyaKZC6Pc4I&feature=youtu.be
[5]
i) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBtct-z9JS8
ii) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6sWaTGLmppg
David Skinner UK
Thanks David. Yes, sadly this is true of much of the West. Here in Australia for example many of the state and federal Liberal Party (conservative) leaders are no better than the Labor Party (leftist) leaders.
The true face of Teresa May came out some years ago when she appeared on the BBC 1 Question Time.
She was asked why she had changed her mind on gay adoption and transgender equality? The audience were clearly amused by her ducking and diving but were not taken in, even if she is by her own dissembling. What is noticeable is her hardened, and stiff-necked expression. [1] We must also not forget that she appointed a lesbian, Justine Greening to the be Secretary of State for Education who is determined to bring in compulsory sex education for four year old children. Like Teresa May she had voted to remain part of Soviet European Union [2]
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peAmygbh7CQ
[2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4WvEDcWao4
Yes David it is the same here. We seldom have quality conservative leaders to stand against the left. Our last federal election had Turnbull (Liberals) vs Shorten (Labor). Good grief: Tweedle-dum vs Tweedle-dee. We lose either way. It sure can get discouraging.
One of the striking results of the UK election is the deep divide that now exists. We now see young versus old and north versus south – as well as pro-Brexit and Remain.
I thought one of the more interesting speeches during the night (here in the UK) was that of Nick Clegg, the defeated ex-leader of the Liberal-Democrats. In alluding to these deep divisions, he talked about the need to ‘come together’ – but then that is merely a euphemism for the need for us all to move left and embrace ‘tolerance’ – when of course those advocating such a position are the least tolerant to Christian views and values.
Yes, while Theresa May obviously had her reasons to call another election, it’s not the best outcome by a long shot. Voter fatigue must be running high in the UK, and was no doubt responsible for this outcome. And now with Brexit negotiations demanding clear and level-headed thinking unhindered by political division, the immediate future is looking grim. Moreover, the fiery and often outspoken Corbyn may well have an unsettling effect on the UK at a time when serious decisions need to be made by those in power.
Bill, I am right now in the UK and couldn’t have said it better than you. Thanks for a great blog.
Many thanks Kameel.
Latest word is Theresa May is forming a coalition government of some kind with the DUP:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jun/09/theresa-may-reaches-deal-with-dup-to-form-government-after-shock-election-result-northern-ireland
DUP is described as pro-Brexit (although not for a ‘hard’ Brexit) and ultraconservative:
https://qz.com/1002440/uk-election-2017-what-is-the-dup-or-democratic-unionist-party/
We’ll see where it all goes from here.
Theresa May’s new ally in government, Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist party, is in favour of a soft Brexit, wishes to maintain a porous border with the Irish republic but also holds illiberal positions on abortion and gay rights. (!)
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jun/09/from-climate-denial-to-abortion-heres-six-dup-policies-you-should-know-about
Yes the conservative, pro-family and pro-life DUP is about the only thing that can save May, politically speaking.
Roger Birch you mean move towards the collective as described by the lesbian, anarchist and Marxist Angela Mason.
David Skinner UK
Looks like Theresa May has done a Malcolm Turnbull. Whether their polling is correct and conservatives actually need to move away from truth and morality and embrace the deception of the age to get elected I don’t know for sure but it doesn’t seem to be correct and it does not seem to do them much good. It certainly does not give the impression of being trustworthy. May appears to have essentially lost the election because of her previous support for wrong policies, not despite them and we are presented with yet another case of democracy becoming increasingly dysfunctional. We, once again in world politics, have a government that both cannot show well the evils of wrong policy as Labour would have done but is incapable of doing good. This seems to be a trend. We boil the frog slowly.
@Alec
“The reason Labour has done so well is that for once young people turned out to vote. Young people generally don’t bother to vote. They did this time for one reason: they were captivated and energised by Jeremy Corbyn.”
Something similar happened around half a century ago and it was not a pleasant experience: China’s destructive Cultural Revolution, which was spearheaded by the Red Guards. The Red Guards was mostly a youth and student movement who idolised Mao Tse Tung , which apparently is quite similar from what I hear to the current British youth’s infatuation with Corbyn.
Hmm… “conservative, pro-family and pro-life” – it’s beginning to sound as though you could do a lot worse than join forces with the DUP, despite the somewhat fiery nature of Northern Ireland!! Surely a pro-life stance is of more immediate benefit to our planet than the somewhat dubious climate change agenda! And as for Jeremy Corbyn, who is both left wing and strongly anti-semitic…. almost anything is preferable to that!
Thanks Ann. Yes, and the DUP are critical of climate alarmism as well!
After living for 40 years in the UK, I left England for Australia after marrying an Australian. That was 35 years ago. We went back in 1996 and enjoyed a month catching up with friends and the church we were part of for 10 years.
I went back in 2006 for a month for the churches 50th anniversary and to check out the state of play there generally.
I sensed that things were going downhill very quickly and there was a darkness and gloom over the nation. I was glad to leave and will never go back again.
In the 60s and 70s, the national church of all persuasions had a mini revival as the charismatic experience hit town. it was a time of refreshing and renewal. In 2006, there was no sign of it anywhere.
I guess the vibrancy of the renewal have been subsumed by secularism (read homosexuality) and Islam. The choice was to stand firm (for truth) or go under (and follow the ways of the world).
Whilst there are churches that have stood firm, too many have gone under. A vacuum does not stay a vacuum for very long.
I am furious about the election result. Corbyn promised people the earth, as usual, with no explanations as to how it would be paid for. There is one issue re the youngsters in England…university fees…they have to pay while the Scots go free and the Welsh get some discounts. A blindingly stupid issue that politicians have refused to deal with. I think this played a sizeable part in their voting choice. But May…the country is being stitched up and I hate to think where it’s heading. It needs The Lord like never before.
For British citizens:
https://www.spuc.org.uk/get-involved/campaign-with-us/oppose-demonisation-of-northern-ireland-prolife-mps
Could a British reader explain why the UK doesn’t have compulsory voting, and holds elections on a weekday, not a Saturday as in Australia?