Never kissed a Tory? It’s time to reconsider

We should be engaging people with differing perspectives, says Steve (Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

I was sitting with my two-year-old son when I heard that the General Election had been called.

Unsurprisingly, we had slightly different emotional responses to the news.

He was annoyed that we weren’t watching a cartoon. Meanwhile my immediate reaction was to count the months on my fingers to check it was, as Rishi said, in the second half of the year.

To be perfectly honest, I would have much preferred to be watching a cartoon, too. But I had the remote and, as I have to stay briefed on current affairs for my job, I wasn’t about to switch over to a different circus just yet.

Like many, I’m sure, I’d been hoping for a General Election for months.

In my opinion, this Conservative Government jumped the shark a few Prime Ministers ago, so hearing that we would finally get a say on the future of this country, and all while sitting next to my lad who will live in that future, I felt hopeful.

The 2024 General Election – Metro style

Not sure what to make of the General Election? We got you.

In your inbox
Follow the battle for No 10 with our free weekly newsletter, bringing you easy-to-read breakdowns and straightforward analysis.

What really matters to you
We focus on the issues that our readers care about. Explore parties’ policies on immigration, tax, childcare, LGBTQ+ rights, housing and the climate crisis.

On mobile
Join us on WhatsApp for a daily selection of news and opinion as the election madness gets underway. And don’t forget to turn notifications on!

On TikTok
Fact-checking? Yes. Voters’ opinions? Yes. Dogs at polling stations? Also yes. Follow us on TikTok.

Hope was soon joined by a feeling of sadness though, because I knew the run up to the election would add tension to some of my relationships. 

Growing up in the red wall, I’ve always been left-leaning. I’m from a family of coal miners and I understood the vibe in the 1980s was rather anti-Tory. 

So it’s no surprise that I have since done one of the most left-wing jobs on TV – being on The Mash Report.

Simply saying: ‘Tories? Yuck!’ isn’t going to be enough to convince anyone, Steve explains (Picture: Steve Ullathorne)

However, the strange thing about me is that I also appear on GB News and Talk TV (which is seen as one of the most right-wing things to do), meaning I know and work with people who are right-wing.

That’s rather rare these days because social media tells us we should shun anyone who politically disagrees with us. 

According to one study, Gen Z has a political gender divide. Young men are skewing to the right, aided by the Tates and Petersons of the world, and young women leaning to the left. 

This isn’t particularly surprising when you consider that a recent YouGov study also found many Brits wouldn’t date someone who disagrees with them politically. 

Not to mention that people proudly wear their ‘Never Kissed A Tory’ T-shirts as if there was some risk of catching it.