At the New Statesman election night party, as we waited for the exit poll at 10pm, Andrew Marr announced in his opening remarks that the 2024 general election would be “remembered for a hundred years”. What will not be forgotten – any time soon, for sure – is what happened to the Conservative Party, which now has only 121 seats in parliament, its worst defeat in its history, and after having won a landslide at the 2019 election on the promise of a new cross-class, pro-Brexit realignment of British politics. It never came close to happening. Levelling up – forget it. Reduced immigration and tight border controls – forget it. Buccaneering Global Britain – forget it. A cascade of free trade deals, as David Davis used to boast – forget it. By the end of the campaign, Rishi Sunak was reduced to promising unfunded tax cuts and warning voters not to “surrender” to Labour. No one was listening to him. His desolate, arid form of conservatism is out of time, and he was out of luck. More than defeated, he was humiliated. He called a surprise summer election, standing in torrential rain outside 10 Downing Street, and then orchestrated a dismal six-week campaign, characterised by gaffes, undermined by cynicism. At least he departed with grace, his final speech as prime minister being suitably contrite.
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