One other thing. Some may think I'm saying "Labour should pander to every flag-shagging whim that right-wing cranks throw at them." I'm saying "treating this as a triangulation problem" is like bringing a knife to a gun-fight. By all means use the knife if it's all you've brought. But get the gun!
Voters aren’t keeping a tally of policies in their heads. They’re registering a view that public opinion cares about migration, and Labour looks like it’s scrambling to address an issue it privately disagrees with public opinion on.
Reform are announcing callous unworkable policies on this, because it signals a determination to respond to public concerns. Trying to peel away Reform’s growing support by picking off the less red-pilled people in their poling numbers may, instead, amplify the message we hope to counter.
The big picture is a confected impression of chaos and an aloof callous govt. You don’t need to be a mindless Labour drone to see the unfairness of this. But our information economy has changed to a point where this is now the everyday reality of politics. Change that economy or get used to it.