The Standard View: Tories face total wipeout in London without change in approach

It is unlikely, but not impossible, that the Conservatives could lose every single one of their seats in the capital. That is the view of Professor Tony Travers, the doyen of London and local governance, speaking in today’s Evening Standard.

The latest Survation MRP poll shows a total wipeout for the Tories across the city, with the party reduced to fewer than 100 MPs nationally. Even if this survey overestimates the collapse in support, it contains a warning that must be heeded.

London may be a Labour city, but Rishi Sunak ought never to give up on it. With 75 parliamentary constituencies, the capital and the Conservatives can hardly afford to be strangers. Yet in order to win here, or at least be competitive, the party must change its tune. Ministers (or, given this poll, perhaps soon shadow ministers) will have to take the concerns of Londoners seriously, whether on housing or sometimes synthetic culture war issues.

The alternative is that the Tories are reduced to a regional parliamentary rump, a long way from being what was traditionally the natural party of government.

It is not the shiny Bakerloo line extension, or even Crossrail 2, but it is something south Londoners can get on board with. Mayor Sadiq Khan today promised that, if re-elected, he will expand the Superloop express bus network by launching a ‘Bakerloop’ service that would run along the first section of the proposed extension.

The route, from Elephant and Castle to Lewisham, would help plug the gap while efforts continue to secure central government funding for the extension of the Tube line. Ever on brand, the buses would even be painted brown to match the livery on Bakerloo line trains, while the inside will be replete with moquette seating.

Of course, the sincere hope is that the Bakerloop will be rendered unnecessary by the Tube line extension. However new trains for the line — let alone the extension — have not been included in Transport for London’s business plan, which sets out investment priorities to 2026/27. Until then, the bus may be the next best option.

Yinka Shonibare does not want statues knocked over in the same way that he would not step into a library and begin burning books he did not like. But from the Benin Bronzes to climate change, the British-Nigerian artist, perhaps best known for his Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle, does not hold back in an interview in today’s paper.

The stunning image which adorns today’s front cover has been designed exclusively by Shonibare to mark his upcoming show at the Serpentine Gallery from April 12. Check it out.