Since Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn promised more bank holidays 60.5% of bets have been on him becoming Prime Minister.
Jeremy Corbyn surprised many this weekend by promising the whole of the UK four new bank holidays if he comes in to power following the general election in June. Despite the strong criticism from many opposing parties who think this represents Corbyn’s naivety, it appears the betting public believe his latest promise could win over voters.
Jeremy Corbyn has proposed four new UK-wide bank holidays saying "the next Labour government will give workers the break they deserve"
— Sky News Newsdesk (@SkyNewsBreak) April 22, 2017
The Labour leader said his policy would ‘bring together’ England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as he plans to give days off to celebrate each nation’s patron saint. He said “The four nations that make up our great country have rarely been more divided due to the damaging and divisive policies of this Conservative Government”. Corbyn then went on to have a sly dig at the current Prime Minister by saying “But where Theresa May divides, Labour will unite our four nations”.
Corbyn’s bank holiday plan has come under scrutiny from his competitors, as they feel he doesn’t fully understand the costs to businesses during bank holiday breaks. Others believe this policy is just a distraction tactic to move the emphasis away from other urgent matters, like his stance on the UK’s nuclear defences.
Immediately after Theresa May called for the “snap” election the Labour leader was a popular pick with the punters; he accounted for 48% of the next Prime Minister on Oddschecker in the following 48 hours. Since then his popularity with bettors has continued to grow and since announcing his bank holiday strategy he’s held 60.5% of all bets placed on the market through Oddschecker.
Labour winning the most seats remained a very popular bet over the weekend. 46% of all bettors believe that Corbyn’s party will win the most seats at the general election, compared to only 35% backing the Conservatives and 8.7% betting on the Lib Dems. Despite the relatively small proportion of bets on the Lib Dems to win the most seats, Tim Farron and his party are being backed to have a successful election. A massive 44% of punters believe that they will win 41+ seats, a significant increase on the number they currently occupy.
Oddschecker spokesman: “Betting on the General Election is following a similar trend to the EU Referendum, with the majority of people backing change (Labour) with the more serious, large-stake punters taking the smaller price (Conservatives) on offer.”
