UK General Election 2024 - Gameplay Thread

[DKrol]

UK General Election 2024

State of Parliament at Dissolution:
Labour: 155 MPs
Conservatives: 150 MPs
Liberal Democrats: 95 MPs
Change UK: 88 MPs
British Freedom Party: 84 MPs
Greens: 35 MPs
Scottish National Party: 25 MPs
Sinn Fein: 7 MPs
Wessex Regionalists: 4 MPs
Ulster Unionist Party: 4 MPs
Social Democratic and Labour Party: 2 MPs
Traditional Unionist Voice: 1 MP

Electoral Regions:

Scotland: 59 MPs
Wales: 40 MPs
Northern Ireland: 18 MPs
England: 533 MPs
-East of England: 50 MPs
-East Midlands: 46 MPs
-London: 80 MPs
-North East: 29 MPs
-North West: 75 MPs
-South East: 84 MPs
-South West: 55 MPs
-West Midlands: 59 MPs
-Yorkshire and the Humber: 55 MPs

PRIME MINISTER CALLS ELECTION FOR MAY 30TH

Prime Minister's Questions, 7 February 2024 02
UK Parliament, via Wikimedia Commons


The News Agents, 17th April, 2024 - "Starmer Heads to the Polls"

Sopel: In case you hadn't heard, we're having another election. The Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has made the trip down to Buckingham Palace and asked the King to dissolve Parliament and call a general election for May the 30th.

Maitlis: This will be our fourth election under the proportional, regional list system implemented by the Gordon Brown Coalition in 2012. 2012 and 2014 saw the Tories returned as the largest party in a fractured Parliament. Since 2019 it's been Labour's turn to try to cobble together a majority.

Goodall: Keir Starmer is asking the British people to grant him his own mandate, replacing the left-wing manifesto he inherited from Alistair Darling's 2019 victory. All eyes will be trained on the upcoming manifestos, given the vast changes we've seen as a society since our last general election. No one had heard of the coronavirus the last time we went to the polls. We'd voted to leave the European Union by the slimmest of margins but successive governments had failed to enact the policy. Europe was looking for to strengthen ties with Vladimir Putin's Russia, bringing more cheaper gas into the market.

Sopel: We've seen a surge of right-wing activism against the Stay at Home Order and a rise in anti-semitism, Islamophobia, and transgender hate. The Conservative Party and the British Freedom Party both rail against the tofu-eating wokerati and the podcast pundit class. The SNP calls daily for a binding referendum on Scottish independence, something that eludes them after nearly two decades in power in Edinburgh. Labour is still working on a five-year-old pledge to reform the House of Lords with healthy divisions on what Lords reform actually means. And the war machines of Putin and Netanyahu continue to grind away in Ukraine and Gaza.

Goodall: Questions are being posed to several parties about what their place is in our politics. After invoking Article 50 was suspended, what is the role of the anti-Brexit Change UK in 2024? What can the Liberal Democrats point to as successes from their time in the Coalition? Do the anti-establishment parties like the Wessex Regionalists, the Greens, and the British Worker's Party continue to earn meaningful votes? Or was their support a one-off reflection of the moment?

Maitlis: This is "The News Agents" - UK General Election 2024.

YouGov Polling - 17th April, 2024

National:
Conservatives: 28%
Labour: 22%
British Freedom Party: 20%
Liberal Democrats: 11%
Change UK: 11%
Greens: 6%
British Worker's Party: 2%

Scotland
Scottish National Party: 35%
Labour: 18%
Conservatives: 15%
British Freedom Party: 11%
Liberal Democrats: 8%
Change UK: 5%
Greens: 5%
British Worker's Party: 3%

Wales
Conservatives: 27%
British Freedom Party: 17%
Labour: 15%
Liberal Democrats: 14%
Plaid Cymru: 10%
Change UK: 10%
Greens: 6%
British Worker's Party: 1%

Northern Ireland
Sinn Fein: 40%
Ulster Unionist Party: 25%
Social Democratic and Labour Party: 14%
Change UK: 11%
Democratic Unionist Party: 5%
Traditional Unionist Voice: 5%

England
Labour: 30%
Conservatives: 25%
British Freedom Party: 16%
Liberal Democrats: 10%
Greens: 8%
Change UK: 7%
British Worker's Party: 2%
Wessex Regionalists: 2%

From the GM:

1. This turn will lend at 11:59 PM on March 21st.

2. Each leader must post a manifesto in the manifesto thread (about to be posted) before the end of the turn. As explained in the rules, the manifesto is your five key proposals. Manifestos will be scrutinized by the press and other parties, so be careful your promises.

[DKrol]

The turn will now end at 11:59 PM on Friday, April 5th.

[Lumine]

Change UK:

Let's Renew Britain

₁

______________________________________________________________

Campaign Launch Remarks

Deputy Prime Minister Soubry opens up the campaign

Five years ago, Britain stood hopelessly divided. Government was gridlocked as extremes appeared to be prevailing, cynical politicians profited off the fears of our citizens, and Britons hungered for change. Real, meaningful change.

Change UK was born out of that desire and hunger for change, a broad-minded coalition of those who could no longer abide for politics to be captured by unprincipled characters or by demagogues unwilling to face reality. We issued the call for Real Change, and in unprecedented fashion, the British people answered by electing 88 of our colleagues: a historic achievement for a new party.

Five years in, much has changed. As a proud participant in a coalition government, Change UK has been at the forefront of trying to find solutions for Britain's largest problems, and as a chief advocate for change. Though the pandemic and Putin's aggression may have disrupted some of those plans, we stand before you with a solid, proven record in government. Others may shout louder, but we work, and we deliver.

Many have asked what Change UK has to offer to Britain after Brexit was stopped, perhaps questioning whether our reason to exist is no longer relevant. We say otherwise. Unlike the extremists and the promise-breakers, we promised to lead and deliver on this issue, and that is exactly what we did.

That this campaign will not be about our past, but about our future, is an achievement made possible through our participation in government. And if you put us in government again, we will unleash our energies to deliver again on housing, on constitutional reform, on the cost of living, on defence, Ukraine, on the Union, and on so many other issues which require an immediate answer.

The question is no longer why vote for a newer party like Change UK. The question must be why vote for the politics of old, when what we need most is to look towards a brighter, more dynamic future.

[Continential]

British Freedom
Time for a government for and by the people

Wednesday 17 April 2024

Nigel Farage kicked off the British Freedom campaign in his home in Kent following the declaration of the election

Folks, I believe we can do this. Mark my words, there will be a government for and by the people when the people of this great nation cast their ballots. It is time for a government which aims to bring growth to this great country, not stifle it. It is time for a government which wants people to do better, not rely on a stagnating government. British Freedom is the people's party, and there will be a government for and by the poeple.

Thursday 18 April 2024

Nigel Farage travelled to Leicester and spoke and campaigned there with list candidates from the Asian community on the education programme proposed in the manifesto.

Friday 19 April 2024

Nigel Farage doorknocked in the North East of England with volunteers and list candidates and focused on debate and campaign strategy.

Saturday 20 April 2024

Nigel Farage makes a speech in Aberdeenshire, Scotland with members of the Scottish list on the commitment to unionism.

Sunday 21 April 2024

Nigel Farage speaks to young voters in St Andrews, Scotland on the issues relating to low salaries and high cost of living.

Monday 22 April 2024

Nigel Farage rests, focusing on debate prep and campaign strategy.

Tuesday 23 April 2024

Nigel Farage makes a speech in Birmingham, West Midlands attacking the Conservative Party for

Wednesday 24 April 2024

Nigel Farage door knocks with volunteers in Montgomeryshire, Wales to attract voters to the British Freedom banner.

[GoTfan]

Schedule for Keir Starmer, April 17-24

April 17: Campaign launch in Manchester with Levelling Up Secretary Angela Rayner, Chancellor Rachael Reeves, and Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham

It's with great pride that today, I announce the launch of the Labour Party's official campaign for the 2024 general election.

I have called this election to renew our mandate to bring real change to the people of the United Kingdom, and our manifesto clearly states what our plan will beL A Fair Deal for Britain!.

While the Conservatives are busy trying to fight a culture war, shouting 'woke!' at everyone from a factory worker to a university student, Labour is focused on delivering for working people. We can achieve energy independence in this nation with clean energy instead of importing gas and oil. We can eliminate homelessness from our society with the right plan.

With the coronavirus defeated and inflation down, now is the time to look to what comes next. We are the party of solutions, of investment in our people, of building this nation for the future. Let's keep going, and deliver a fair deal for Britain!

April 18-19

Canvassing in Northwest England with Mayor Burnham. This is a traditional stronghold of the party and should be shored up in light of the increasingly populist turn taken by the Conservatives. Emphasis is put on Labour's support for working people; an increase to the minimum wage and rebates for energy and fuel costs. Labour will not touch winter fuel payments for pensioners or the triple lock system; those are strictly off-limits.

April 20-21

Build infrastructure in Southwest England. Traditionally a firmly held Conservative region, Labour believes that with Braverman leading the Conservatives in a far more populist direction, the region would be open to an argument of stable government. Much of the emphasis here is on the government successfully stewarding the nation through COVID-19 and the continued reduction of inflation

April 22-24

Canvassing in Southwest England. Much of the same reasoning is given as when building infrastructure in the same region; Labour has shepherded the nation through the coronavirus, inflation crisis, and will continue to stand by our allies in Ukraine. Emphasise the stability that a re-elected Labour government will provide, as opposed to rapid changes that would destabilise the country.

Summary

Labour's campaign strategy is apparent from the outset: Labour offers stability, unity, and reform to key areas of the national economy, along with Labour's plans to further prosperity and in particular, deal with homelessness. The Conservatives meanwhile only offer chaos, hate, bigotry and outrage politics that are big on talk but thin on actual policy, and are more obsessed with screaming 'WOKE!' at everything under the sun.

The Labour ministers are likewise instructed to present themselves as the stable, tested hands in comparison with the frothing-at-the-mouth Trump-style outrage politics being peddled by the right.

[Lumine]

Week 1:
A Party that can deliver

In General: Change UK started its campaign on April 17th with a campaign rally in London by Deputy Prime Minister Soubry and other relevant Cabinet ministers (including Chuka Umunna, Chris Leslie, and Heidi Allen), issuing a vibrant call to arms and setting out the terms of the campaign for the party.

Having proven itself in government and remaining a comparatively new party still, Soubry has decided to assert that Change UK is more relevant than ever, it's success on delivering on key pledges - like Brexit - being trumpeted as a sign that the party has delivered and that it will keep on doing so.

As a result, and though the likely main target for the campaign has been identified, Soubry and the Change UK ministers will spend the first week rallying the party base and showcasing why Change UK must be part of the next government.

Concepts: Three key concepts are being introduced by the Change UK at the outset of this campaign: One, "Change UK delivers", constantly outlining and championing the party's role in coalition government, delivering key pledges on issues like Brexit, and generally putting the blame on more "extreme" partners for the failure of House of Lords reform; Two "Let's Renew Britain", as the main slogan associated with the manifesto, which will set up a series of needed reforms that the party intends to deliver on; and Three, "Tories have lost the plot", part of an election-wide strategy to make gains in the "Blue Wall" by campaigning against Suella Braverman's perceived extremism.

Strategic: Having achieved the feat of obtaining seats across all four nations back in 2019, the challenge is two-fold in seeking to retain the bulk of those while expanding elsewhere. For the most part, Soubry will seek to hold the line in Wales, Scotland and the North of England; thus heavily targeting the MP-rich South as part of its offensive on the Conservatives and, in a secondary level, the Liberal Democrats. Resources will therefore be targeted more heavily in the South West, South East and London as key battlegrounds.

Campaign:

• April 17-24th: Southern Offensive - After the manifesto launch in London with the Change UK ministers and other key supporters, Soubry spent the first week of the campaign in the South of England as follows: London (3 days), South West (2 days), South East (2 days).
  
  
  • London: Soubry and the activist base targeted the capital heavily after the manifesto launch, generally targeting younger voters with heavy talk of housing as a key issue in need of urgent and drastic reforms. The issue was framed as one in which "traditional politics" has very much failed Britain and particularly a younger generation lacking answers, and one in which neither Labour nor the Tories (particularly the latter) have the right answers. Soubry promised that housing would be Change UK's priority number one while in government.
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  • South East: For the South East, the first "anti-Conservative" messages were tested on the road, seeking to attract moderate and/or one nation conservative voters by persistently telling voters that the party had "lost the plot" by focusing on cultural fights instead of real issues. In contrast, Soubry repeatedly championed the appeals of a moderate social-market approach to the economy, and - perhaps cynically - added a cultural aspect of her own by noting Change UK's more conservative views on issues like Ukraine, protecting the Union against the Nationalists, and standing up for the Monarchy.
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  • South West: In the South West proper, Soubry alternated between repeating similar criticism of the Conservative Party as having "abandoned its own voters to chase Farage's", and also criticizing the Liberal Democrat turn to the left under Cooper as the equivalent, suggesting both parties were more interested in "outdoing the extremists" than they were about representing ordinary Britons in search of common sense government. Closing off with an attack on the Lib Dems as a "NIMBY" party that stood in the way of solving the housing crisis, Soubry redoubled promises to dramatically expand affordable housing and to properly fund the Armed Forces.