The Public Have Spoken: #GeneralElectionNow

Aim

No new PM without a general election! This isn’t about left vs right, this is about regaining credibility and stability. End the chaos!

93% of the public support a general election. Donate to Open Britain’s fighting fund and we will kick and scream as loud as we can, until this government gets the message - it’s time to give the people what they want.

Liz Truss has been in office for less than two months, and has already caused a major catastrophe. Her notorious 'mini budget' crashed our economy and spooked the financial markets, forcing the Bank of England to step in and spend tens of billions of taxpayers' money to avoid complete meltdown. She sacked Kwasi Kwarteng to save her own skin, despite it being her policy from the start. And now her Home Secretary has been sacked. 

The government’s incompetence is astounding. The country’s credibility is in tatters. Every day of chaos means more damage is done to ordinary people and businesses. Every day of damage makes it harder and take longer to repair. We must act quickly and decisively.

Let’s be clear - the public did not vote for this. No one voted for £45 billion of uncosted tax cuts. No one voted for financial market meltdown and soaring mortgages caused by financial irresponsibility in the middle of a cost of living crisis. No one voted to reinstate banker’s bonuses. No one voted for U-turns on banning no-fault evictions. No one voted to lift restrictions on fracking, scrap environmental protections or to strip worker’s rights. The constant u-turns are destabilising the economy internationally. 

Governments only govern by consent. That consent derives from a set of election promises in a manifesto, decided by a general election. If a ruling party deviates from a manifesto, they might claim a mandate if they’re popular in the polls. On a rare occasion, without a manifesto and without being popular, they might claim a mandate IF they have the backing of the majority of MPs in the commons - but this government doesn’t even have that.

It’s simple. A Government which was not elected on a manifesto, lacks the support of the public, and has no allies in parliament must go. This government has lost all credibility. It has no mandate. We did not vote for this. We need a General Election and we need it now.

We need high profile media campaigns, we need ad campaigns, billboards, we need to make sure the press is talking about this. We need to make MPs listen, and know that the public is watching their next move closely. We need to be seen and heard on the streets. We need to do this, now. With your help, we can do that.

Liz Truss is already under pressure to resign, but Conservative MPs know that calling an election now would mean devastating losses for their party. 

But in preventing an election, they’re putting the interests of their party above millions of Britons who are suffering as a result of their government's incompetence. We’ve been through four chancellors in four months, and if left unchecked, we’ll have our second unelected Prime Minister in three months.

High profile public pressure is their weakness. This government has shown itself to be ruthless in pursuing its agenda. They will not consult with the public, they will not listen to advocacy groups, they will not respond to protest. They have, however, shown themselves to be susceptible to high profile public pressure - just look at countless U-turns over the last few months. If we can somehow bring enough media attention to the public’s attention, with a credible way forward, we can pressure the Tories to do what’s right. 

Fighting for a general election is the best thing to do for the fate of our country, and it’s the only thing that can clear the political deadlock. All we’re asking for is a democratically elected government (of any colour), with a clear plan (scrutinised and challenged during an election campaign), and a mandate which delivers the social stability, political certainty and economic confidence we need to stop the chaos.

Our fighting fund will:

• Kick off a nation-wide digital advertising campaign to make people aware of the gravity of the situation and the threat to our democracy.
• Raise public awareness, both online through targeted digital ad campaigns, and in the real world through ad-vans in high footfall locations around the country
• Build media pressure by pushing our message in the press and in media
• Help supporters email their MPs to make sure Tory MPs know the public is watching
• Turn up the pressure with on-street protests, working with partner organisations
• Speak directly to Parliamentarians, shoring up all the support we possibly can

The more we raise, the more we can do. In these times of total political uncertainty, the strength of our democracy is only held together by all of us doing what we can to make our voices heard.

We have even more in the works. The only thing we’re missing is the funding we need to make this campaign powerful enough to stand up to the Conservatives. With your support, we can draw a robust red line that they won’t dare cross.

Let's do this!

We are Open Britain. We are a not-for-profit movement amplifying the voices of hundreds of thousands of supporters. Our campaigns have changed the face of British politics. We’re the group that can make this happen. Help us bring our democracy back from the brink.

This project successfully funded on 14th November 2022