Fixing the Brexit deadlock

In his fourth bid, the British PM, Boris Johnson managed to get the approval of the MPs to finally resolve the Brexit deadlock by calling a general election on December 12 which would be the most unpredictable of its kind in a generation.

The margin of 438 to 20 for the vote underlines the fact it was by no means a victory for Boris, instead, it was a unanimous decision of the members of the house. The Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn this time supported the bill. He has announced that Labour would support an election as a "once-in-a-generation chance to transform the country". The pre-Christmas vote will be the first December poll since 1923.

Though uncertainty looms over the final verdict, experts nurse the view that Boris might find it difficult to have his way and win the election. This is notwithstanding the fact that he has been ahead of Corbyn by at least 10 points which is likely to be more with the polls getting nearer.

The Britons are not too happy with the decision to hold the election. They criticise Boris for foisting an election unto them for no tenable reason. They point out that there are many other important issues to address aside from Brexit. They strongly nurse the opinion that the general elections must be about these other issues. The 1997 election was about 18 "wasted" years of Tory government, with Tony Blair's manifesto saying "Britain deserves better". In 1974, Edward Heath called an election seeking an answer to the question of who governs Britain – the prime minister or the unions. The answer the electorate returned was the unions. More often than not, politicians overestimate their ability to frame the terms of political debate.

This was clearly visible during the last three and a half years of Tory rule. While Theresa May reasoned that Brexit was the only issue in her snap election of 2017, Johnson is doing the same thing. Both these Prime Ministers are guilty of ignoring the needs of the country

and this happened at a time when the UK is facing financial distress. The issue of austerity has been staring at Britain. During May's time, it dominated voters' thoughts and that did not help her. Boris Johnson is on the path to making a similar mistake.

Democracy should be about more than cynical calculation. Forcing the country to go through an exercise that generates little enthusiasm is a way of feeding the distaste for politics to people. MPs voted for Brexit last week in the shape of the withdrawal agreement bill. Johnson could have pushed ahead to get this deal through the Commons. But Boris, the Tory leader, lacks that intellectual grace to accommodate divergent views.

Undeniably, Brexit will be central to the campaign this time. The scenario will be dictated by, on the one hand, plebiscitary demand to leave the EU and on the other, parliamentary compulsion to hammer out a Brexit compromise.

It is interesting to watch how the left and socialist forces are trying to check the right-wing political forces but their strategy has failed to have much impact on voters. Significantly, Boris and his party are openly gearing up to take on Labour and particularly Corbyn but unfortunately, he has not succeeded in providing a clear direction. It is his dithering on Brexit that has inflicted much damage to his political equity. In contrast, his stance on political and economic issues has attracted young voters.

But, he has struck a cautious note and told his party men that he had not wanted an election but was forced to seek one because Labour would have "sliced and diced" his Brexit legislation beyond recognition without it.

In order to strengthen his position, Boris has decided to allow 10 of the 21 MPs he expelled last month to return to the party fold. The major battle lines of the campaign will be drawn on the subject of Brexit after the fact that Johnson failed to take the UK out of the EU on October 31 as he had promised.

The Conservatives will campaign to deliver Brexit by pushing through Johnson's deal, while Labour is promising a second referendum to let the people resolve the EU question. The fact of the matter is that Labour has been deeply split for months about whether to back an election or a second referendum first. It was due to this confusion that more than 100 Labour MPs abstained and 11 voted against the motion. Tories on their part have been decrying him for his leftist and Marxist ideas. They argue that he is inconsistent and not fit to rule Britain.

What is interesting is that in spite of all their reservations and reluctance about Jeremy, people nurse the view that Boris's stance would not augur well for the UK. Nevertheless, Corbyn said, "We would tell the people of this country there is an alternative to austerity. There is an alternative to inequality. There is an alternative to sweetheart trade deals with Donald Trump". What is clear here is that Britain envisaged by Johnson is altogether a different country than the one Corbyn wishes to build.

Views expressed are strictly personal