MADRID: On Thursday, more than 46 million British citizens are entitled to cast their ballots in a general election. Across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, a total of 650 Members of Parliament (MPs) will be elected on a first-past-the-post system.
When the snap election was called by UK Prime Minister Theresa May five weeks ago, it appeared as if her Conservative party, that held a majority of 330 seats in the House of Commons at London’s Westminster Palace on dissolution, would significantly increase their seats, taking advantage of the party’s 20 percentage points lead in opinion polls and apparent disarray in the ranks of the main opposition Labour Party, led by Jeremy Corbyn.
It was another former UK prime minister, Harold Wilson, who noted in the 1960s that week was a long time in politics. With two terrorist attacks, in Manchester on May 22 and London last Saturday night, five weeks of the campaign seem like an eternity for May, who has seen support for her Conservatives consistently dwindle.
Weekend opinion polls show her party is still the most popular but her personal ratings are down. And Corbyn, who has faced two revolts of Labour MPs during his 21-month-old leadership of the party, is growing in popularity for being more accessible and likeable on the doorstep.
In the wake of the terrorist attacks, May has come under fire for cutting back front line police officers during her six years as the Home Secretary — the British minister for the interior responsible for policing, security and MI5, the UK’s domestic intelligence agency.
She’s also appeared to be unsettled by dealing with hard questions from members of public — and her party handlers have kept her away from contact as much as possible.
She has refused to participate in televised debates, with Corbyn coming across as more reasonable, honest and plain speaking. He has gone so far to suggest that May should resign because of her record in cutting more than 20,000 frontline police officers during her tenure as Home Secretary. His party is promising to hire 10,000 new police officers immediately if Labour forms the next government.
Here’s a look at the two main leaders, their parties and the issues, and how they stack up heading into Thursday’s ballot:
THE LEADERS
Theresa May, Conservative party
May became Britain’s second female prime minister last July but, unlike her predecessor Margaret Thatcher, she came to power without winning an election.
The Conservative leader aims to put that right by convincing voters that she is the tough, competent leader the country needs to steer it through difficult times.
A Conservative colleague once called her “a bloody difficult woman”, when he thought no one was listening, and she now wears that description as a badge of honour. Others have described her as “rigid” and “inflexible”.
But until she moved into Downing Street, following the resignation of David Cameron, she was, in truth, something of a mystery, even to many in her own party.
She is an intensely private politician, by modern standards, and has rarely opened up about her personal feelings or beliefs.
Briefly
Date of birth: 1 October 1956 (aged 60)
Job: MP for Maidenhead since 1997. Home Secretary 2010-2016
Education: Mainly state-educated at Wheatley Park Comprehensive School with a brief time at an independent school; St Hugh’s College, Oxford
Family: Married to Philip May
Hobbies: Cooking — she says she owns 100 recipe books. Occasional mountain walks. On BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs in 2014, she chose Abba’s Dancing Queen and Walk Like A Man, from the musical Jersey Boys, among her picks, alongside Mozart and Elgar. She chose a subscription to Vogue as her luxury item, reflecting her lifelong love of high fashion
Jeremy Corbyn, Labour Party
Corbyn’s election as Labour leader in September 2015, at the age of 66, was one of the biggest upsets in British political history.
A veteran socialist, who had spent 30 years on the back benches championing controversial causes and voting with his conscience, he had been persuaded to stand only because none of his friends on the Labour left had wanted to do it.
But something about the bearded, unassuming Islington North MP struck a chord with Labour members in a way that his three younger, more polished — and more obviously careerist — rivals did not.
His election as leader, by a thumping majority, heralded a remarkable revival in fortunes for a brand of left-wing Labour politics that looked to have been consigned to the dustbin of history by Tony Blair.
He has endured fierce criticism from senior party figures and a failed attempt to unseat him through a second leadership election.
Briefly
Date of birth: 26 May 1949 (age 67)
Job: MP for Islington North since 1983
Education: Briefly at fee-paying preparatory school before a state primary and then, after passing 11-plus, a grammar school, in Newport, Shropshire
Family: Lives with third wife. Has three sons from earlier marriage
Hobbies: Running, cycling, cricket, jam-making with fruit grown on his allotment and Arsenal football club. His most unusual hobby is an interest in the history and design of manhole covers. He is also a fluent Spanish speaker, who enjoys Latin American literature
THE ISSUES
Brexit
Conservatives: The prime minister has made it no secret that she has called this election to get a strong backing ahead of Brexit negotiations should the Tories win.
The campaign has stuck to the line of the country needing a strong leader — May — to take Britain through the process.
Although a Remainer herself, the Conservative leader has since said she respects the democratic vote and will get the best deal for the country even it means no deal.
She has also attacked Corbyn on Brexit saying his party wants to introduce a system of “uncontrolled migration” after the party’s secret plan to allow thousands of unskilled workers to enter the UK after Brexit was leaked.
Where the manifesto is concerned, the Tories have said they plan to leave the single market and customs union, while also seeking a partnership with the EU.
The party wants to pass a Great Repeal Bill to convert EU law into UK law and see that a “fair settlement of the UK’s rights” are included when the withdrawal goes ahead.
A pledge to see a “smooth” Brexit has also been made on several occasions, with May saying during a live debate that “no deal is better than a bad deal”.
Labour: The party line was to support the Remain campaign, but Corbyn has since said the people have voted and the decision should be respected.
A promise shared by Labour as well as the Greens and Lib Dems, the Labour Party wants to immediately see a guarantee for EU citizens staying in the country that they can remain in the United Kingdom.
Labour also wrote in their manifesto that they will scrap the Brexit white paper and replace it with a new list of negotiation priorities.
The Great Repeal Bill will be replaced with an EU rights and protections bill that will see workers rights safeguarded.
Corbyn has said he would walk away with no deal if the negotiations do not seem successful for Britain is “not an option”.
Others:
Liberal Democrats: Party leader Tim Farron has said the Lib Dems will hold a second referendum, this time on the Brexit deal, which will also give people the option to remain in the European Union.
UK Independence Party: Ukip’s Paul Nuttall launched their manifesto with clear intention of quitting the customs union, the single market and the European Court of Justice. The party also pledges to pay no divorce bill to the EU and aim to have negotiations completed by 2019.
Green Party: Like the Lib Dems, the Green Party also want to hold a referendum on the Brexit deal with the option of remaining in the EU.
Scottish National Party: Nicola Sturgeon is determined to ensure the SNP and Scotland have a seat at the table during Brexit negotiations. Similar to the Green Party, SNP also want to ensure rights safeguarded by the EU do not collapse when the UK exit.
Immigration
Conservatives: A divisive topic that May believes was at the root of last year’s vote for Brexit. Her Conservatives are sticking to rigid targets to rein in immigration.
Labour: Have steered clear of numerical targets, offering a more flexible stance.
Tax
Conservatives: Pledge to keep taxes “as low as possible”.
Labour: The party has outlined £48.6 billion of tax rises to pay for health and education promises.
Companies and wages
Conservatives: They will legislate to make executive pay packages subject to annual votes by shareholders. Listed companies will have to publish pay ratios to show the disparity between executive pay and the pay of ordinary workers. They pledge to increase the national living wage in line with an increase in median earnings
Labour: The party promises it will discourage excessive pay packages by charging companies 2.5 per cent for paying employees more than £330,000 (Dh1.56 million), and they will raise the minimum wage to £10 (Dh47.39) an hour by 2020. They will introduce four new public holidays to mark the patron saints’ days of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. They will ban so-called “zero-hours” contracts that tie workers to a job without guarantee of any paid work
Energy
Conservatives: The party says no more large-scale onshore wind power plants in England and they will support developing a shale gas industry in Britain They propose a price cap on gas and electricity charges paid by most homes. Independent review into the cost of energy
Labour: It wants to ensure that 60 per cent of energy comes from zero-carbon or renewable sources by 2030, and will ban fracking. They will take power and gas grids back into public control and introduce an emergency price cap to ensure average dual power and gas bill is no more than £1,000 per household
Other key pledges
Conservatives: Retains promise to build 1 million homes from 2015 through 2020; pledges an additional half a million by end of 2022
Labour: Inject £37 billion into National Health Service over next five years, including £10 billion for buildings and IT systems
— With inputs from agencies
