During the summer months, when political news has been scarce, speculation has turned to election timing. May. Some believe Westminster, as councils and many other foreign legislatures for that matter, should be elected for a fixed term. This would bring clarity to the parliamentary timetable and deny the incumbent party an unfair advantage.
Timing is crucial.
By all accounts the Conservatives had the beating of Labour in the run up to the summer recess. Coming off the back of good local election results, the party began to improve its poll ratings and, among Westminster watchers, Hague was clearly ahead of Blair. But by late August that poll rating had begun to slip back again with some Conservatives airing further doubts about their leader. The problem for the Conservative Party is that it has to fight simultaneously on two fronts. To recover from its mauling in 1997, the party must win back seats from both Labour and the Liberal Democrats.