Sunak avoids wipeout in key elections

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s governing Conservatives lost two strategically important parliamentary seats on Friday but unexpectedly retained Boris Johnson’s old constituency in a setback for the opposition Labour Party. The Conservatives’ narrow victory in Johnson’s seat gave Sunak some breathing space to try to narrow Labour’s large lead in the polls by aiming to reduce high inflation and ease a cost-of-living crisis before a national election expected next year. Sunak was quick to hail the win as proof the national election was not a “done deal”. In a cafe in the constituency, he told reporters: “The message I take away is that we have to double down, stick to our plan and deliver for people.” But the scale of the challenge was highlighted by the loss of the once safe Conservative parliamentary seat of Selby and Ainsty in northeast England, where Labour overturned the biggest Conservative majority at a by-election since World War Two. Labour leader Keir Starmer said that victory showed “just how powerful the demand for change is”. The Conservatives also suffered a crushing loss in another vote but the retention of the seat of Uxbridge and South Ruislip just outside central London by fewer than 500 votes ensured Sunak avoided becoming the first British leader to lose three by-elections on a single day in more than half a century. Conservative former minister David Jones told Reuters his party now needed to push economic policies to rebuild support in traditionally strong areas. “With up to 18 months until the election, there is time to do it,” he said. Sunak, a former finance minister and investment banker, has tried to use his technocratic leadership to restore the Conservatives’ credibility after a series of scandals last year forced Johnson to resign as prime minister, and economic turmoil prompted his successor, Liz Truss, to quit after just six weeks. He is expected to reshuffle his senior ministers soon to pick his team to fight the next election. With stubb