Corbyn Holds Johnson to Debate Draw: U.K. Campaign Trail
Corbyn Holds Johnson to Draw in Debate: U.K. Campaign Trail
For Jeremy Corbyn, who’s a long way behind Boris Johnson in every other poll, last night’s TV debate looks pretty good.
Although the headline result was a draw, 67% of respondents thought Corbyn performed well, showing why these debates are such a risk for the prime minister. The exchange had plenty of clippable moments: The audience laughing at Johnson when he said he thought trustworthiness mattered. Mirth at the Labour leader’s defense of his Brexit position. Johnson was firm on his position on leaving the European Union, while Corbyn talked about the public sector, including the National Health Service.
For more on the election visit ELEC.
Coming up:
- Both Corbyn and Johnson are expected to be campaigning in northern England.
- The Liberal Democrats will unveil their policy manifesto at 5 p.m. in London.
- Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab travels to Brussels for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers.
- The Brexit Party will be holding an event in east London.
Polls:
- YouGov conducted a snap poll on the debate, giving it to Johnson by the narrowest margin: 51% to 49%. The full report digs into audience impressions.
- The Conservatives’ mean score on 100-point scale up slightly since last week from 33 to 36, and the other parties remain unchanged with Labour at 25, according to Lord Ashcroft Poll.
- Here’s a summary of recent polls.
- A Conservative majority remains the most likely result, according to betting markets, with Paddy Power placing a 67% probability on that outcome.
Catching Up:
- Labour’s plan to increase tax on top 5% may raise less than the party thinks, according to a leading think tank.
- Prince Andrew’s relationship with deceased pedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein moved to the middle of the election when Corbyn said the Royal family “needs a bit of improvement.”
- The Tory press office masqueraded as Twitter fact-checkers during the debate, outraging genuine organizations and generating a warning from the social media site, CNN reported.
- Labour has proposed putting consumers as well as employees on the boards of large companies.
The Markets:
- The pound fell 0.2% against the dollar on Tuesday, the first loss in five days. Sterling was down 0.2% in early trading on Wednesday.
To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Hutton in London at rhutton1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at tross54@bloomberg.net, Chris Kay, Adveith Nair
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