We revealed yesterday the list of 38 constituencies that have not yet selected Conservative Parliamentary candidates given to the Board of the Party earlier this week – now updated.
Coffee House also reported that the suspension of Nick Timothy and Stephen Parkinson, two of Theresa May’s special advisers, was discussed.
However, the Board also took a decision – namely, to review the whole operation of the list after May’s election.
I gather that senior members of the voluntary party, as well as MPs, are uneasy with the way in which the list is now working – including the way in which candidates are sometimes recommended to seats.
CCHQ has long given Associations that are undertaking selections a steer, particularly in “safe” seats, and there was a mood at the meeting to probe the way that these are being undertaken.
Certainly, some Associations have been ruffled by what some members feel has been the aggressive promotion of some candidates during selections.
This site picked up rumblings after the Braintree selection, for example – though not about the successful candidate, James Cleverly, an occasional writer for this site.
And CCHQ readily admits to presenting Associations with demographic profiles of their seats, together with a view of what sort of candidate they might want to look it.
This procedure can be viewed as a kind of replacement for the A-List, which Grant Shapps clearly believes was more trouble than it was worth.
We’re told that from February 18 by-election procedure kicks in – in other words, sifting committees in any selections that start after this date will be given a list of six candidates to consider.