Towards Thursday

Economist.com | Our British election endorsement

The election campaign in Britan is entering its final and decisive days. On Thursday the choice will be made.

It has been a lacklustre campaign. Turn out on polling day might well be lower than what one is used to. Neither of the parties have managed to generate the enthusiasm necesssary to create a real bandwagon effect.

So far, one should add. Elections are always decided on polling day. Never before.

In general terms is seems as if the country has lost faith in Tony Blair, not the least because of the way he handled the run up to the war in Iraq, but that it is not ready to put its faith in the Conservative leader Michael Howard.

The one has lost the thrust of the nation - the other has failed to gain it.

Two of the internationally most prestigous publications - The Economist and Financial Times - have now both reluctantly endorsed the Labour Party and Tony Blair. It's reluctant endorsements.

The European policies of the Conservatives contributes to the scepticism against them. Financial Times describes them today as "impossible and infeasible", and says that they "could plunge a Conservative government into Britain's most severe isolation from the rest of Europe in more than 30 years."

It seems as if the really interesting time in the politics of Britain will start after the election.

There will be the beginning of the change in the Labour party to the post-Blair era. And there will have to be the beginning of a change in the Conservative party towards policies that are both possible to win on and to govern with.