Jeremy Corbyn will target wavering working class Labour voters with cash offers and a deal to “get Brexit sorted” in a final eve-of-poll push to win the general election.
The Labour leader will use a rally in Middlesbrough, in the party’s Leave-voting heartland of the north east, to make one last plea to get traditional supporters to turn out.
Labour strategists have told HuffPost UK that they believe that the whole election could now hang on the “undecideds”, those who have supported the party in 2017 but who have told canvassers they still haven’t made up their minds.
Corbyn will say: “My message to all those voters who are still undecided is that you can vote for hope in this election. It’s time for a pay rise for 12 million people, for lower fares and bills and for free childcare.
“We will put money in your pocket because you deserve it. The richest and big business will pay for it. We will save our NHS by giving it the money it needs, ending privatisation and by not selling it out to Trump.
“And Labour will get Brexit sorted – we will secure a good deal for working people, and give you the final say.”
The party believes that its key Brexit message – that Labour will sort the issue one way or another by the middle of next year with its referendum – is getting more traction than many assume.
Insiders say the message works when voters are told Johnson’s Brexit won’t be ‘done’ by the end of next year and would be unresolved for years after that.
Both internal party polling and polling for trade unions like Unite have shown huge numbers of Labour supporters still listing themselves as “don’t knows”. Although some have switched back to the party in recent days, their role is seen as crucial.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell signalled on Monday that the result now “will be dependent on turnout”.
Meanwhile, a new Deltapoll poll by the National Education Union has revealed that Labour has increased its lead among parents, from 5% to 8%. Some 57% of parents think that schools are not funded properly and eucation has moved up from 4th to 3rd place in the list of issues parents are concerned about.
Dr Mary Bousted Joint General Secretary of the NEU, told HuffPost UK: “This campaign has been more than just about Brexit. Education and child poverty is clearly a key issue.
“With just days to go before voting day people should make sure they are aware of how their vote could affect children and young peoples’ education.”