Things can only get better? Starmer victory recalls run-up to 1997 and all that

After disastrous losses for the Tories in two out of three by-elections, today feels much more like the run-up to Blair’s era-defining 1997 triumph than the abject defeat of 1992, writes Andrew Grice

Starmer’s allies insist that both Selby and Uxbridge vindicate his strategy (PA Wire)

Conservative MPs grasping for crumbs of comfort have pointed out that by-election defeats like their historic one to Labour in Selby and Ainsty on Thursday are often reversed at the subsequent general election.

Some Tory minds turned to the 1987-1992 parliament, during which the party lost four seats to Labour and three to the Liberal Democrats in by-elections but won all seven back at the 1992 general election, helping John Major to pull off a surprise victory.

This spin might raise the Tories’ spirits, but it doesn’t get them very far. It’s not a rule: in the 1992-1997 parliament, the Tories lost four seats to the Lib Dems and three to Labour in by-elections, but won back only one (Christchurch) at the 1997 election, when Tony Blair won a thumping 179 majority.