Esther McVey has said that if rumours of a snap General Election are true, it would be "the most cynical and deceitful electoral manoeuvre in modern British history." Writing as an Express columnist, she claimed that since Andy Burnham took over as Prime Minister on July 20, he has shown no interest in taking tough decisions like cracking down on immigration or reducing the welfare bill, instead spending his time burnishing his socialist credentials and building up his left-wing voter base.
Claims of voter-harvesting
McVey pointed to Burnham's declaration at Prime Minister's Questions that national security "cannot come at the expense of social security," calling it a planned shout out to those on welfare. She also cited his assertion that the door remains open for another vote on Scottish independence as a calculated attempt to shore up the nationalist-leaning vote north of the border.
She said Burnham's overtures about re-entering the European Union are a bid to win back Liberal Democrat Remainers, while his increasingly critical stance on Israel is designed to lock down the Muslim electorate that until 2019 voted overwhelmingly for Labour. His reluctance to state a firm position on Heathrow expansion keeps his Greater London base on board, and his refusal to support new drilling in the North Sea is a nod to bring old-fashioned Greens back into the fold.
Legislative changes criticised
McVey said that by giving the vote to 16- and 17-year-olds, Labour is manufacturing an extra 1.5 million voters. She also criticised the government for rushing through regulations via the Representation of the People Bill to axe mandatory photo ID checks at polling stations, calling the downgrading of security checks a "brazen manipulation of the system."
She claimed that Burnham's pledge of a national social care plan was uncosted, and that Number 10 has been forced to issue corrections admitting that residential care was omitted from the headline £18billion-a-year scheme.
Election motive
McVey said the potential election would be framed as a quest for a personal mandate for "Manchester Andy," but in reality it is a "smash-and-grab mission" to hike taxes and fleece the British public. She said the UK coffers are empty, and the only solution is to engineer a rushed winter election, alter the voting rules to ensure victory, and immediately squeeze the taxpayer for more money.
