Tories blame Sunak for this implosion but they are fooling themselves. The rot goes back decades | Martin Kettle

Since Thatcher was deposed, there has been an absurd yearning to magic her back into existence. Their rightwing obsession stems from that

What an absolute shambles the once formidable Conservative party has now become. Whatever happened to political probity, discipline and even mere professionalism? And what an important development this Tory collapse may prove to be for British politics, not just next week, but in the future too. Even now, it is hard to believe it is happening. But it is.

At least the Tories would run an effective campaign, one still assumed, perhaps naively, when the election was called a month ago. Winning elections is one of the things the Conservatives have always been very good at. Sure, they were on the defensive and the polls were against them. And Rishi Sunak isn’t the greatest leader. But this party is nothing if not focused. Even in defeat, it would surely go down fighting.

Martin Kettle is a Guardian columnist

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