If the Tories don't pull together, Labour can gain power

GLOBAL markets are ignoring the potential danger of a hard-left Labour election victory in the UK.

For the moment, most international investors are sanguine as the next UK general election is due only in 2022. But the political and economic climate is likely to be volatile in the next three years. Moreover, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has indicated that he could sow discord and reject a government compromise Brexit deal with the EU. Mr Corbyn's hope is that the Tory right and left-wing factions will tear each other apart over Brexit during the Conservative Party conference this week. This could open the door to an early election. The hope of Tories and global investors is that the Conservative Party will eschew Brexit divisions; that the government will produce practical ideas and take action to regenerate the economy and improve the National Health Service, education and security.

If the Tory right and left cannot join hands, Labour could duck through the political gap and gain power. Prime Minister Theresa May does not have a majority government. An Ipsos Mori poll shows that about six in 10 voters dislike the Conservative party while almost six in 10 prefer Labour. The Conservatives membership base has shrunk to 124,000, and they are mostly older people. Labour's membership has soared to 540,000; and the majority of youth, especially in London, voted for the party in the 2017 election. If there were a "hung parliament" with no majority, Labour would seek support from the left-wing Scottish National Party and the Liberal Democrats.