Theresa May launched her election campaign warning about a coalition of chaos and now she is leading one. It won’t work and can’t last. After the election result we have just had, we can’t return to politics as usual with a May-led Tory government. So three things need to happen now.
First we can’t carry on with May as prime minister, propped up by the DUP. The prime minister called an unnecessary election, made it a referendum on her leadership, and then lost. How can she possibly stay in post?
She lacks the skills needed to handle a hung parliament – to be collegiate, to listen, be open and compromise. Much more important, it goes against the national interest for there to be a formal deal between the government and the DUP. The Northern Ireland peace process is very fragile at the moment, with a stand-off under way between Sinn Féin and the DUP. The UK government, which is supposed to be a neutral guarantor, just decided to pick sides.
