When the Labour party was conceived, it was as a party of the working-class. Ukip now wants to become that party of the working-class. As Labour have lost their way, Ukip will become the party of the working-class and Labour will become one of the UK's minority parties.
Jeremy Corbyn as leader
Since Jeremy Corbyn has become Labour leader the party has torn itself to pieces. The party now consists of two factions, the membership and the majority of the Parliamentary Labour Party. The membership trying to stay loyal to the working-class ideals laid down by Keir Hardie.
The PLP being adherents to Blairism, a more mercurial strand of Thatcherism.
Corbyn comes down on the side of the Labour party membership, leaving him mostly alone amongst his fellow PLP members. This has left him having to change his opinions or options on various ideas, therefore looking to have bent towards the will of the political elite.
Corbyn backs down
Corbyn has campaigned for years on the decommissioning of Trident. Now he leads a party that believes in the renewal of Trident. We then have a Labour party leader who is almost invisible on this issue, an issue he has always been vocal on.
During the EU referendum, Corbyn had to change tack from his previous position on leaving the EU. He then had to go and campaign for the Remain camp, a campaign that was derided by many in his own party for being lacklustre.
He now backs Brexit, whereas many of his parties do not and their old leader in Tony Blair has started to look at coming back into politics because of this, adds to the argument that no one really knows what Labour want to do.
Ukip as challengers
Today Douglas Carswell and Paul Nuttall both stated that Ukip will take Labour's seats in their working-class heartlands.
There are divisions in Ukip, including party members punching other members over disagreements. This though is seen by the public as a preferable way to do politics than the current knifing someone in the back via a well-placed statement. However, with their newly announced leader, they appear to be pulling themselves back into order.
During Brexit, Ukip campaigned on leaving as a statement against the political elite. The Labour party in recent years has left its political roots and now has MP's who have come from the elite. People who as children went to private schools then went to Oxford or Cambridge and then straight into a political job. These people have then never had to experience the reality of life for many of their constituents.
This is what UKIP will focus on, Labour has abandoned working-class people and no longer works for its constituents. The proof is that even Corbyn is having to abandon his beliefs, to work with the political elite who according to Ukip run the Labour party.
It is possible to argue that growing membership of the Labour party proves that Labour is still a force.
The problem is that this membership is portrayed by the media as all being Corbynistas. These Corbynistas are the last elements of the UK left according to the media. Ukip will campaign then that a Labour stuffed with these people are unelectable and a leftist elite who do not understand the working-class anymore. Unless Labour can come up with a plan to counter this argument, then this argument will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Ukip will argue that the ordinary working-class people of the UK voted for border controls. Labour is still seen as the party that launched uncontrolled immigration into the UK and they still, have a policy that is very pro-immigration. Ukip will argue that they are not then understanding their constituents, or even worse are ignoring their constituents.
Labour then, has to pull itself together if it wants to survive. It needs a coherent policy, one that everyone in the adheres to and follows. It looked Corbyn might have been the tonic to resurrect the Labour party, at the minute he just looks like its final dose of poison.
