Sunak conceded for the first time that his party could be on course to lose its majority but said voters would not want to see Sir Keir Starmer “propped up in Downing Street” by the SNP, the Liberal Democrats, and the Greens.
He insisted that the Conservatives were the only party with “a plan to deliver” despite facing criticism earlier in the day from Suella Braverman, who urged the prime minister to change course.
The former home secretary, one of his fiercest critics, said it was too late for a change in leader because not even a “superman or superwoman” could restore the party’s fortunes. “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election,” she warned.
One cabinet minister described the mood among Tory MPs as “sullen” and said the election results showed that the party was “clearly as behind as the polls suggest.”.
Sunak insisted that the picture was not as bleak as his critics made out and pointed to the analysis from Sky News, which put the Tories only nine points behind Labour in the share of votes cast on Thursday. If this were replicated in a general election, he suggested, Labour would fall 32 seats short of an overall majority and could have to rely on smaller parties to form a government.
“These results suggest we are heading for a hung parliament with Labour as the largest party,” he told The Times. “Keir Starmer propped up in Downing Street by the SNP, Liberal Democrats, and the Greens would be a disaster for Britain.
“The country doesn’t need more political horse trading, but action. We are the only party that has a plan to deliver on the priorities of the people.”
Other polling experts dismissed the projection, pointing out that it was based solely on the way in which people had voted in the local elections, in which they tend to back smaller parties and independents, skewing the overall result. They said it was also based on Labour winning only one seat in Scotland.
Labour said it was “not planning alliances” with the SNP “or anyone.”.
Sunak, who is due to formally respond to the results on Monday, the 14th anniversary of the election that brought the Conservatives to power in 2010, said he understood voters’ frustration but still believed he could win another term in office.
• Andy Street: I’m a proud Tory, but being mayor is about place, not party.
“I know the last few years have been tough, and I understand why people are frustrated,” he said. “Losing good Conservative councillors and a mayor as fantastic as Andy Street, who has done so much good for the West Midlands, is, of course, bitterly disappointing.
Rishi Sunak: Britain faces a hung parliament at the general election.
Britain is heading for a hung parliament, Rishi Sunak has claimed as he urged Tory MPs to end their divisions and “come together” to take on Labour.
In his first comments since the full extent of the party’s local election losses became clear, the prime minister admitted that the results had been “bitterly disappointing” for the Conservatives. The party lost nearly 500 council seats and the West Midlands mayoralty.
However, Sunak seized on a projection by election expert Michael Thrasher that suggested if Thursday’s results were replicated in a general election, Labour would fall short of enough seats to win power.
Sunak conceded for the first time that his party could be on course to lose its majority but said voters would not want to see Sir Keir Starmer “propped up in Downing Street” by the SNP, the Liberal Democrats, and the Greens.
He insisted that the Conservatives were the only party with “a plan to deliver” despite facing criticism earlier in the day from Suella Braverman, who urged the prime minister to change course.
The former home secretary, one of his fiercest critics, said it was too late for a change in leader because not even a “superman or superwoman” could restore the party’s fortunes. “At this rate, we will be lucky to have any Conservative MPs at the next election,” she warned.
One cabinet minister described the mood among Tory MPs as “sullen” and said the election results showed that the party was “clearly as behind as the polls suggest."
Sunak insisted that the picture was not as bleak as his critics made out and pointed to the analysis from Sky News, which put the Tories only nine points behind Labour in the share of votes cast on Thursday. If this were replicated in a general election, he suggested, Labour would fall 32 seats short of an overall majority and could have to rely on smaller parties to form a government.
“These results suggest we are heading for a hung parliament with Labour as the largest party,” he told The Times. “Keir Starmer propped up in Downing Street by the SNP, Liberal Democrats, and the Greens would be a disaster for Britain.“ The country doesn’t need more political horse trading, but action. We are the only party that has a plan to deliver on the priorities of the people.
Other polling experts dismissed the projection, pointing out that it was based solely on the way in which people had voted in the local elections, in which they tend to back smaller parties and independents, skewing the overall result. They said it was also based on Labour winning only one seat in Scotland.
Labour said it was “not planning alliances” with the SNP “or anyone."
Sunak, who is due to formally respond to the results on Monday, the 14th anniversary of the election that brought the Conservatives to power in 2010, said he understood voters’ frustration but still believed he could win another term in office.
• Andy Street: I’m a proud Tory, but being mayor is about place, not party.I know the last few years have been tough, and I understand why people are frustrated,” he said. “Losing good Conservative councillors and a mayor as fantastic as Andy Street, who has done so much good for the West Midlands, is, of course, bitterly disappointing.
“But I am determined to show people that we are delivering for them and standing up for our values.”
He added, “There’s work to do and more progress to be made, and I am determined that we will come together as a party and show the British people we are delivering for them.”
Labour is due to mark the anniversary by launching a new campaign highlighting what it says has been 14 years of “chaos and decline” under five Tory leaders.
Pat McFadden, the party’s election coordinator, said there was now a “sense of belief” that Labour could win.
“We’ve become used to losing,” he told the BBC on Sunday. “And I think even some of our voters have thought, well, I’ll vote Labour, but they never win. But I think there’s a mood of change in the country.
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