Labour MPs panic as PM turns again

Reform UK - aka Conservatives' Retirement Home

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ANOTHER week in which the government has displayed all the sure-footedness of that classic scene where Bambi takes to the ice for the first time; slipping, sliding, ultimately getting nowhere and just ending up on its backside and a figure of fun.

Another reverse in policy this one concerning the controversial idea of digital ID cards takes the tally to 13 for a government that's been in power just 18 months.

To misquote Oscar Wilde, to lose one argument and perform a U-turn may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose 13 looks like carelessness.

But what makes this even more troubling for Labour, and specifically for Sir Keir Starmer, is the calamitous impact the Prime Minister's strong support of the ID card scheme had in the eyes of the public.

Because prior to his unequivocal backing it enjoyed the support of 35 per cent of those polled, but afterwards it slumped to minus 14 per cent.

That's quite some “reverse Midas touch!”