It’s November, 2017. The Conservative-led coalition has fallen apart as a result of internal battles over Brexit and natural attrition through by-elections. After the general election, Corbyn took power at the head of a coalition that also included Scottish and Welsh nationalists and the Liberal Democrats. What did the government look like?
Here’s my guess:
1. Scotland: Corbyn had to agree to a new referendum on independence, on a date established by the SNP, in order to get the SNP to join his government. Playing the long game for once, he didn’t object, because he figured that the referendum would fail, and that the disgruntled SNP voters would then drift back to Labour. He was right.
2. Brexit: Corbyn had no emotional attachment to the EU, but the logic inherent in his political position drove him to support the softest possible Brexit. British business sighed with relief, and the negotiations, while difficult, went more smoothly than one would have expected.
3. Donald Trump: Corbyn’s coalition partners prevented him from doing anything really stupid and left-wing on the economy, but he managed to keep his true believer supporters on board by lashing out at Trump at every possible moment. His new-found political orthodoxy was consequently masked by his anti-American rhetoric. This worked, as well.
And so, it is just about possible to believe that a man who clearly isn’t fit to be Prime Minister could have success leading a coalition government.