LONDON (Labour Buzz) - A surge in support for the Brexit Party has led to a decrease in support for the government who now fear a drubbing in an early election.

The government is expected to table a motion on Monday calling for a general election to be held on December 12. The SNP have announced they will not support the early poll. The Liberal Democrats have also announced that they will defer their decision based on the length of the extension of Article 50, decided by the EU.

Until this week, the Conservatives have been ahead in nearly all the polls since Boris Johnson came to power. Many of the Brexit Party’s voters returned to the Conservatives when Theresa May left office.

In the European Parliamentary elections earlier this year the insurgent Brexit Party heavily beat the Conservatives. Richard Tice, the party Chairman confidently tweeted, “Bring it on,” when then the news of the possible December election broke. The Brexit Party are confident that Boris Johnson's failure to deliver Brexit will yield a strong result for them in any future election.

Senior Labour figures will be pleased with the poll, which places the party ahead of the Tories squashing the notion from Labour backbenchers that Labour cannot win a snap poll. The party had been concerned that its attempts to unite the country over Brexit had led to voters abandoning Labour in favour of the remain supporting Liberal Democrats, and the leave supporting Brexit Party.

On Wednesday evening Labour tabled a motion to protect the NHS from any future trade deal with Donald Trumps’ crony corporate friends. The Tories along with the DUP voted against the motion and the Liberal Democrats abstained.

During the debate, Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary said, “A Trump trade deal would lock in privatisation of our NHS ushered in by the Health and Social Care Act. Any government seeking to undo that privatisation in the trade deal is liable to getting sewed in an international tribunal by investors…Its not taking back control it’s a democratic outrage.”

In the general election, Labour will seek to steer the debate towards domestic policy where the party believes it has a stronger offer. After a decade of austerity and stretched public services, Labour feels its message of investment in public services, nationalisation and increased public sector workers pay, will win over both leave and remain voters looking past Brexit.

After the debate, Jeremy Corbyn tweeted, “The Tories voted against Labour’s motion to safeguard our NHS from being sold off to US corporations in a Johnson-Trump trade deal. And the LibDems, who voted to privatise the NHS when in coalition, abstained. Labour built the NHS and we’re the only party that can save it.”

The Liberal Democrats who have so often warned that the NHS could be privatised in any deal with the US failed to offer any defence when given the chance. If Jo Swinson and the Lib Dem MPs voted with Labour the NHS could have been better protected.

Tony O’Sullivan, Co-Chair of the ‘Keep our NHS Public’ campaign said, “We welcomed the motion of regret, as a commitment from Labour’s team to end privatisation, to reunify the NHS as a public service. The endorsement by the SNP, Green and Plaid Cymru parties for this position is extremely heartening, proving the NHS still has broad cross-party support.

The repeated failure of the LibDems to stand up for our NHS however, who in the end abstained is shameful. While we face the potential of disastrous trade deals with Donald Trump's administration, and an uncertain general election ahead, KONP’s work to highlight the critical importance of health and social care had never been more relevant and urgent.”

(Written by Brendan Chilton, edited by Michael O’Sullivan)

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