As my train hurtles northward, my phone starts to buzz. Jeremy Corbyn has agreed to hold a December election. So: a Tory prime minister, miles ahead in the polls, fighting an election pledging to get Brexit done — and facing a useless opposition. It all feels very familiar. And yet comparisons with 2017 are not so simple. Last time round, Labour successfully faced both ways on Brexit. Now their indecision means they are being squeezed between pro-Leave Tories and pro-Remain Liberals. Last time, Corbyn won the consolidated anti-Tory vote, but today it is fragmenting. And the differences continue. Boris Johnson is a born campaigner, whereas Theresa May wilted under pressure. Boris has ended austerity, while Theresa refused to change fiscal policy. And this time, I expect the manifesto will be less controversial.
My train journey is taking me from London, my adopted city, to Birmingham, my home city. The service is usually reliable, but the prices are crazy — you can fly to Europe for the same price as a single peak-time ticket — and the trains are overcrowded. High Speed 2 is controversial: its costs need to be cut, and the blight on communities reduced. But my journey is a reminder that our transport infrastructure needs to improve, and fast.
One purpose of my journey is to see the local derby in the League Cup between my beloved Aston Villa and our (recently) noisy neighbours, Wolverhampton Wanderers. This season, the Premier League has introduced Video Assistant Referees, which cause havoc in almost every game: disallowed goals, unawarded penalties, missed red cards. Football fans everywhere curse the system. Whether it’s technology in sport, artificial intelligence in business, drones in warfare or social media in almost any field, we’re learning that technology only magnifies human vices and virtues, weaknesses and wisdom.
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