Because of the "first-past-the-post" electoral system that we use in Britain, it is not sufficient for a party to win votes: it has to concentrate those votes in the right places so that it can win seats. This is one of the problems facing William Hague. At the last election, Conservative votes were distributed around the country far less efficiently than were Labour votes; if there is a uniform swing across the country to the Conservatives at the next election, the Tories will need to win far more votes than Labour to become even the largest party in a hung Parliament, let alone to win an overall majority.
How likely is it that people in Britain will regularly use a single European currency and coinage in 2005, 2010, 2015?
Pulse Check
Pulse Check delivers key insights from Ipsos' Political Monitor, Political Pulse, and Public Services data, along with reactive polling, to help you navigate the evolving political landscape.
The millennium woman may be as comfortable in the board room as she is in the kitchen, but new MORI Financial Services research commissioned by Direct Line Financial Services shows that men still rule the roost on what is bought and how it's paid for.
Denmark's vote in a referendum not to join the European Single Currency should be a reminder to Tony Blair and his colleagues, if one were needed, of the scale of the task facing them in winning a future referendum to secure British participation in the Euro. When Prime Minister Rasmussen called the referendum he was well ahead in the opinion polls, and, anyway, all the major Danish political parties were in favour. Much of the Danish media was broadly sympathetic. Danish businesses almost unanimously thought it was a good idea. The polls indicated that on occasions over the past few months the "Yes" campaign was well ahead in public support, though the public also swung in the other direction on occasions as well. Yet Denmark said "Nej".
