So, has it all sunk in yet? We don’t yet know which version of Boris Johnson we’ll get, nor what sort of trade deal he intends to pursue with the EU.
What we do know for sure, however, is that many folk down south were persuaded that they really, really want Brexit. A fundamental shift has taken place, not only in England’s mindset, but the manner in which its voters were induced to back Mr Johnson.
What else have we learned from this extraordinary election? Well, here’s my initial take. I look forward to hearing yours.
1. The ruthless, despicable tactics used by Dominic Cummings and Vote Leave to win the EU referendum campaign were not an aberration. As Mr Johnson’s victory highlights, they are the new norm. We’re going to have to get used to digital platforms and elements of the media spreading misinformation like wildfire, possible foreign interventions, bamboozling distraction techniques, blatant dishonesty during broadcast interviews. How the Conservatives’ opponents respond will be crucial. Play it clean and be crushed, or get dirty, too, and join in them in the moral sell-out? You decide.
2. Simple slogans – especially those created by the aforementioned Cummings – really do work. By the end of the campaign just about every voter vox-popped in England seemed to be parroting the “we just need to get Brexit done” line. This undoubtedly helped consolidate the pro-Brexit vote around the Tories.
3. Labour’s claim to be the party of working people no longer stands up. Jeremy Corbyn and his disciples can blame media bias for his party’s disastrous result till the cows come home but it won’t change the fact that their man and his policies were a monumental turn-off across the party’s traditional heartlands. Labour’s disastrous stance on Brexit didn’t help, but the rejection goes deeper. The fact that people living in poverty believed Boris Johnson would look after their interests better than a lifelong socialist is both grim and fascinating. Sadly for the poor, we can’t bet on Labour facing up to these harsh truths any time soon.
4. Speaking of Labour claims that don’t stand up, we can surely all now agree that a Labour government is not going to “save” Scotland, either from the Tories or independence. This ridiculous and out-dated argument was still being peddled on doorsteps, not only by London-based Labour but many in the Scottish party, too. It really would be in the party’s interests to accept that comparing independence – which for the vast majority of supporters is based on a simple desire for self-determination – to Farage-style nationalism is not only highly insulting, but as we’ve seen for years, electoral suicide. There have been signs over the weekend that at least some in Scottish Labour are waking up. Too little, too late? Quite possibly.
5. The evisceration of the Lib Dems tells us that Jo Swinson ran a flawed campaign based on a fatal overestimation of her own popularity. It also suggests England doesn’t like three-party politics.Or hung parliaments. You can kiss goodbye to any thoughts of electoral reform.
6. The SNP-Tory stand-off over Indyref2 cannot go on forever. Both sides are already upping the ante, with Mr Johnson and Michael Gove categorically ruling out another referendum, and Nicola Sturgeon intensifying the narrative with talk of Scotland being “held prisoner”. Such shadow boxing plays well to both parties’ core support, of course, but eventually one side will have to go for the knockout blow. It’s hard to see what more Ms Sturgeon can do in the face of such denials and hypocrisy (apparently the Tory majority is a mandate for Brexit but the SNP landslide is not a mandate for indyref2) from a tin-eared PM buoyed by a right-wing majority, at least until the Holyrood elections of 2021. However Mr Johnson, who purports to be a classical scholar, would do well to learn lessons from more recent events, not least the unstoppable push for devolution that resulted from Mrs Thatcher’s condescending and contemptuous attitude towards Scotland during her 11- year stint as PM. The unpredictable nature of the Johnson-Cummings premiership means you never know what will happen, of course. Will they fancy calling the SNP’s bluff? Time will tell.
7. Meantime, the SNP needs to fashion fresh and persuasive arguments for independence in the post-Brexit world, with palatable solutions to the difficult questions and scenarios created by the UK leaving the EU.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel