Battling Boris

Borisjohnson_4
Left of centre pressure group Compass has put out a document today that seeks to expose Boris Johnson as a member of the hard Tory right.

I doubt whether that will come as much of a surprise to many people. The tactics of this report are debatable, but it is certainly right to argue that "The battle lines of future political wars between left and right are going to be fought in London over the next ten months."

Underneath the media circus, a Livingstone-Johnson contest would be one of the most ideologically polarised elections in recent history. If Johnson’s right-wing populism is a threat to Livingstone, it also risks undermining David Cameron’s faltering attempts to reposition the Conservatives towards the centre-ground, and the Bullingdon Club connection might make it difficult for the Tory leader to distance himself if the Johnson campaign implodes.


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2 responses to “Battling Boris”

  1. Carl Malways avatar

    I’m not sure whether Boris will be that right wing, but I feel that Ken has been rattled. The fact he has attacked Boris for receiving advice on crime from Lee Baca shows that Ken will stoop low. London needs advice on gun, drug and gang crime – not relationships with dodgy South American despots.

  2. Tom Griffin avatar

    The Met has more officers on the streets under Livingstone than ever before in its history. That kind of thing costs money and I question whether it would be sustainable under a Johnson administration.
    The sub-Jeremy Clarkson stuff that the Compass document points to might appeal to a lot of people, but does it make Johnson the best person to run the tube or the buses, or to deal with London’s black community.
    He’s going to be a great frontman for Operation Trident with some of those quotes.

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