'Prosper UK' - the new centerist movement with Ruth Davidson and Andy Street

[WishIWasHibernating]

Caveat - I am not in politics, but I am interested in the political situation in this country, where we are not being forced to choose between extremes of the far left and the far right.

Really interested to see what happens with this movement and I have just signed up to show my support. I believe we need a centrist alternative to the current dithering Labour party vs. the disintegrating Tories/rabid Reform.

At the very least, if they can show how many politically homeless people there are in this country, maybe there will be a lightbulb moment for the main parties to see that becoming more and more extreme isn't the answer.

im quite anti-Tory but like and respect both of these characters

interesting to see how it pans out but I doubt it will have much impact

politics is so polarized these days there barely seems room for centrists which is a shame

I suppose the lib dems would say they sit in that middle ground tho

Always felt Davidson was wasted in Edinburgh. The Tories would be in a happier place if she had been at Westminster.

Could be interesting, although if The Libs can't get anywhere I am not sure if this will

Agree @JamesClyman

@Clearinguptheclutter - I know they are supposed to but... they have had SO MANY opportunities to be the voice of reason as most parties start frothing at the mouth and becoming more and more extreme - why have they never stepped up?

I'm the same. Have never been fan of the Tories but I do have a lot of time for Ruth Davidson and Andy Street. I might have some disagreements with them about how things should be done, but I can at least respect them both as decent and principled people who are in politics for all the right reasons.

I really hope that their movement takes off. There is definitely space for a reasonable centre right option. However, judging by Kemi's recent comments, they might have to build a new home outside the current Tory party in order to pursue this.

Is it a new party or movement within one @WishIWasHibernating?

I had a look at their site and there’s a few quotes eg

We need less government interference, more freedom to start and grow a business, lower and fairer taxes and a real chance for your children to do better than you.

Jackie Doyle Price
Former Industry Minister

It doesn’t sound like Labour but it does sound like what Kemi is saying anyway.

As far as I understand it, they intended it as a movement within the Tory party. However, Kemi has made it pretty clear that she isn't interested in what they're offering, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if they end up breaking off into a new party.

The Tory party has always been a very broad church. Really, I think the moderate centre right people need to break from the hard right, and what's left of the hard right may as well join Reform.

@MrsBennetsPoorNervesAreBack - I do agree that I think they will struggle within the current Tory party. And I cannot see alignment with Kemi - nor do I think she's electable. I wonder if they are seeing what sort of take up there is for the concept of a centre movement that might break out of its host party one day? They have an interesting list of backers on their website.

I think I just want a little glimmer of reasonable hope in these dark times!

Kemi's problem is that she is trying too hard to sound like Farage - but people who want the country to move even further to the right are surely more likely to vote for Reform, so I'm not really sure who she thinks she will be appealing to.

Kemi isn’t going to appeal to anyone who is sticking with Labour no matter what anyway.

Going by ratings she’s picking up support where others are losing it.

She might surprise you. She’s getting a lot of support on SM and generally gaining ground. I don’t agree she is unelectable any more than Starmer, Farage or Davey.

Fair point @EasternStandard - I can't say we have a rich pool of potential Prime Ministers to pick from there!

I suppose I still feel that Kemi is further right both in terms of her natural bent and also her desire to outcompete Farage than I am comfortable with.

My ideal scenario is that all the rabid right jump on board with Reform - making them unelectable. And a new centre movement manages to mop up level-headed Tories and sane New Labour types into a cross-party - 'can't we all just focus on getting us out of this mess' movement.

I can but dream!

Well, obviously not, but that wasn't really the point I was making.

Also, I'm not sure if you're trying to suggest that I will be sticking with Labour no matter what, as that isn't necessarily the case. I have voted Labour previously, but I've also voted Green and Lib Dem.

At the next election, I will probably end up voting for whichever party is most likely to keep Reform out. Even Tory if necessary, but only if they stop seeking to be Reform Lite, as that would obviously defeat the object.

I don’t actually disagree with anything in the quotes on their site. They all seem to be saying lower gov interference and more private enterprise and growth. That sounds good, I think it can be part of the current leader’s message though.