Labour has ‘almost no chance’ of a majority and could slump to less than 200 MPs at the next General Election, warns think tank
The Fabian Society said it must link arms with other parties in a coalition if it wants to win in 2020
LABOUR must link arms with other parties in a coalition because it has “almost no chance” of winning a majority at the next election, a left-wing think insists today.
The Fabian Society said it was unthinkable the party would win enough votes to govern solo, suggesting Labour will win less than 200 seats in a general election either next year or in 2020.
Currently the party holds 231 seats but analysis of election and polling data shows Labour could lose between 140 and 200 seats in big city and industrial constituencies.
The think-tank - connected to Tony Blair’s new Labour movement - recommended it should consider forming alliances with the Lib Dems, SNP or other centre-left parties.
It said the party must position itself in the centre-ground and find a way to appeal to both Remain and Leave voters, as it is losing as many votes to the pro-EU Liberal Democrats as pro-Brexit Ukip and the Tories.
Fabian Society general secretary Andrew Harrop said: “As things stand Labour is on track to win fewer than 200 seats, whether the next election comes this year or in 2020.
“Even if Labour recovers it has almost no chance of securing a majority in a general election, because it needs over three million more votes than the Conservatives to win.
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“Labour’s aim for now should be to move forwards not back and win enough MPs to be able to form a governing partnership with other parties.”
The report found four million people who voted Labour in 2015 no longer supported the party.
Some of those had switched to another party but more than half said they were undecided or would not vote.
It came as new poll ratings show Labour has dropped further than the party’s worst performance since 2009 last month.
The YouGov survey for The Times put the party on 24 per cent with the Tories at 39 and Ukip at 14.
The Lib Dems improved to 12 per cent.
And yesterday one of Jeremy Corbyn’s key backers, Unite boss Len McCluskey, said if the “awful” polls didn’t improve the Labour leader could step down.
In response to the Fabian Society report a spokeswoman for Mr Corbyn said: “Rebuilding Labour support after its fragmentation at the 2015 election was always going to be a challenge.
“But Labour under Jeremy Corbyn will be taking its case to every part of Britain in the coming months with a radical policy platform, offering the only genuine alternative to a failed parliament political establishment and the fake anti-elitists of the hard right.”