This wasn’t supposed to happen, was it?
With Labour leading in the national polls and the first Burnham-Healey Budget having just been delivered, Reform have gained two Council seats this week including one from Labour.
Labour have also gained one from Reform - by just two votes!
It confirms the volatile nature of British politics right now, as the country heads towards an early General Election.
Yes, I know that Andy Burnham has again been denying that there will be a snap vote next year.
But just look at that Budget: it failed to address anything fundamentally, as Britain goes broke.
Welfare spending is surging to even more unsustainable levels, some are forecasting household energy bills to rocket by 27% in January - and the Government’s response is a £100 payment to some people living in certain Council tax bands.
Meanwhile UK economic growth has been downgraded to a feeble 1% for 2027 with Government debt recently hitting £3 Trillion for the first time ever.
Yet the Burnham Government’s choice is to push back any tough decisions, kick the can down the road and talk about rejoining the European Union instead.
And we’re already beginning to see the backlash against Labour’s push to betray the Brexit vote.
Because on the very week of the Burnham Government’s first Budget, Reform gained a seat from Labour in Bassetlaw with close to 46% of the vote.
Whilst in Halton, Nigel Farage’s party gained a seat from the Liberal Democrats, with Labour in third.
Just to demonstrate the volatility of politics right now though, Labour gained a seat from Reform in Dudley by just two (2) votes.
In that same election the Tories took 317 votes and Restore 159.
But despite the Labour poll leads and the mainstream media onslaught Reform is now facing, things clearly aren’t all going Burnham’s way.
His party and Government’s strategy continues to be to delay everything and kick the can down the road.
That can only last so long. And I still believe that it is taking us towards a snap vote that will not only determine the next Government, but whether we stay out of the EU or not.