Inside Politics: Andrew Neil slams Boris Johnson for giving him the slip

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There are only six days left until we go to the polls

All must have prizes! The Turner Prize judges certainly think so. The panel have caused joy, anger and some superb chin-stroking in the art world after deciding all four of the nominees were winners – a bold statement about “solidarity” and “social poetics” (whatever the hell that is). Unless the polls start moving quickly in Labour’s favour, Jeremy Corbyn may be forced to decide something similar on 13 December. What does “winning” really mean anyway, you know guys? Maybe a hung parliament could be a bold statement about “solidarity” and “social poetics”, yeah? Boris Johnson believes it’s the winning that counts: he wants a workable majority to get his Brexit deal passed. But the creatives at CCHQ are agonising about what kind of majority might constitute “workable”. I’m Adam Forrest, and welcome to The Independent’s daily Inside Politics briefing.

Inside the bubble

Our Europe correspondent Jon Stone on what to look out for on the campaign trail today:

This time next week we should know the result of the general election! But it ain’t over yet: a Lord Ashcroft poll of 2017 voters found that 36 per cent of Labour voters and 25 per cent of Conservatives voters made up their minds in the last week. For now, Jeremy Corbyn will be kicking off the day with a speech in central London. We don’t know what it’s about, which usually suggests a surprise. After that, Labour’s Rebecca Long-Bailey will be unveiling the party’s small business manifesto in Bolton. Meanwhile Jo Swinson will visit a playgroup in Hampshire to talk about her party’s childcare policy. The day caps off with the final head-to-head debate between Corbyn and Johnson, 8.30pm on the BBC.

Daily briefing

NEIL YE BEFORE ME: Woe betide any politician who spurns Andrew Neil. The BBC broadcaster ended his live interview with Nigel Farage (more of him later) by looking directly at the camera and delivering a message for Boris Johnson. “It is not too late. We have an interview prepared. Oven-ready, as Mr Johnson likes to say.” Knowing full well the PM won’t be appearing, Neil said his questions would’ve been about why so many people who know Johnson “deemed him to be untrustworthy”. As if to prove Neil’s point about ducking proper scrutiny, Johnson whipped out a mobile and took a cosy selfie with Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby after a soft interview on This Morning. No selfies tonight when he debates Jeremy Corbyn in Maidstone for an hour-long BBC1 programme hosted by Nick Robinson.

RALLY PALLY: Some big beasts are stalking the jungle in the final days of our election safari. Old enemies Sir John Major and Tony Blair will address a Final Say rally in central London today, where they will urge supporters of a second Brexit referendum to vote tactically. The event, organised jointly by Vote for a Final Say and For our Future’s Sake, is backed by The Independent. Thousands have been spent on ads in 25 key marginal seats where just a few hundred people could halt a Johnson majority – and Vote for a Final Say is now extending its activities to three more constituencies. In a very Trumpian move, Johnson claimed Labour would “rig” another vote on EU membership – appearing to refer to the idea of allowing EU nationals and possibly 16 and 17-year-olds to take part. More people taking part in democracy? What a swizz!

SISTER SLEDGEHAMMER: Nigel Farage likes to participate in democracy wherever and whenever it suits him. The Brexit Party leader denied he’d been playing silly buggers by pulling candidates from Tory seats, telling Andrew Neil his outfit had “pole-axed” the Lib Dems in the south and was “tearing chunks” out of Labour in the north. Farage then had the cheek to accuse the group of four Brexit Party MEPs who quit and urged people to vote Tory of playing silly buggers – and pointed out their family ties and friendships with the Tories. One of the four who dealt the blow, Jacob Rees-Mogg’s sister Annunziata fired back at Nigel’s suggestion they had been nobbled. “It’s really quite disturbingly old fashioned that people are suggesting my brother gets to tell me what to do with my political views – he doesn’t.” Don’t mess with anyone called Annunziata, is my advice.

FANCY A TOPPLE: Jo Swinson hasn’t had a great campaign, forced to watch her personal and party poll ratings take a nose dive. So she might as well have a bit of fun. Swinson held up a stuffed Boris Johnson toy at a rally in Edinburgh on Thursday night, then threw beanbags at the thing in a game of “topple Boris”. The Lib Dem leader also had a serious, if slightly below-the-belt, point to make: Johnson cannot be trusted to look after the UK’s “family of nations” because “all know he's not much of a family man”. However distasteful, the unanswered question of how many children the PM is something voters are talking about. One of the protesters who surrounded the Tory campaign bus in Derbyshire yesterday said it was one of the “issues” he had with Johnson.

NEVERENDING STORY: It doesn’t look like Labour’s antisemitism problem is going to magically go away in the final days of the campaign. The Jewish Labour Movement released a document, submitted to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, containing sworn statements from 70 witnesses and new allegations about anti-Jewish racism in the party. They include claims one member described Jews as “subhuman” and said they should “be grateful we don’t make them eat bacon for breakfast every day”. Utterly grim. The Labour-backing GMB made the unusual move of writing to party leaders, warning them not to “victimise” whistleblowers who had given evidence. Utterly grim that the union felt the need to do so.

HUW LOVE TO SEE IT: Another day, another BBC scandal. This one, I’ll let you know right now, is extremely minor – it involves things Huw Edwards has “liked” on Twitter. The News at Ten presenter offered his little love hearts to tweets criticising health secretary Matt Hancock, and a GMB union video about the NHS which ended with a “Vote Labour” message. He shrugged off claims of bias. “Yeah I like a tweet which seemed to be a celebration of our wonderful @nhs – apologies for not watching right to the end. But apologise for supporting the NHS? Never.”

On the record

“The prime minister of our nation will at times have to stand up to President Trump, President Putin, President Xi of China. So we’re surely not expecting too much that he spend half an hour standing up to me?”

Andrew Neil wonders why he’s more frightening to Boris Johnson than world leaders.

From the Twitterati

“Can I point out that if Mr Corbyn had asked for a selfie, we would have happily obliged.”

Phillip Schofield explains when he posed for a pic with the PM...

“Just unfollowed Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby on insta, that’ll teach them the Tory loving rats.”

...as Madz from Wales sets the tone among responding Corbyn supporters.

Essential reading

John Rentoul, The Independent: Is Boris Johnson about to fall into an election panic?

Geoff Norcott, The Independent: Calling working-class Tories traitors won’t make us vote Labour

Nick Cohen, The Spectator: Fear has triumphed over loathing this general election

Michelle Goldberg, The New York Times: Please, Democrats, don’t make the impeachment articles too narrow

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