Allegations that several government officials attended a large Christmas party at Downing Street last year has caused anger among much of the British public.
Evaluating the development on Star Sports’ The Polling Station, William Kedjanyi and Johnny Ward discussed what impact the news could have on political betting markets.
With a by-election scheduled for the constituency of North Shropshire next week on 16 December, the pollsters noted that odds for the victor in the traditionally Conservative seat have begun to shift towards the Liberal Democrats in the wake of recent events, suggesting a potential upset.
“We’re literally now 4/5 for the Lib Dems to win North Shropshire, we’re evens for the Tories and we’re 50s for Labour,” Kedjanyi explained.
“That’s a remarkable turnaround. You could have gotten 3/1 or 4/1 a couple of weeks ago, I’m quite sure I’ve seen 9/2 about for the Lib Dems in North Shropshire, and the Tories were short as 1/6 to hold North Shropshire – it would be an absolute seismic shock.
“We have to remember that this is not really a seat that should be in reach for any other party,” he said, adding; “It’s a pretty dyed-in-the-wool Tory stronghold.”
However, Kedjanyi did also observe that the arrival of Boris Johnson’s second child with his wife Carrie could provide a public relations boost for the government between now and next Thursday’s election.
