The News of the World reports that Tory membership is down by 40,000 (approximately 15%) since David Cameron became leader. The graphic on the right from the NotW (click to enlarge) shows that membership is falling in the Associations of all shadow cabinet members. ConservativeHome had been pressing to see membership data but in a […]
24 hours after the Derek Conway report was published David Cameron took decisive action against the disgraced MP and he has kept up the momentum over the last week with welcome requirements for greater openness from his frontbenchers with regard to their taxpayer-funded expenses. It’s also fair to say that Mr Cameron, with considerable support […]
Two-thirds of the 1,284 members who answered ConservativeHome’s November survey rejected the idea of "special favours in Conservative Party selection processes" for individuals who defect from other parties. Just 17% thought that the need to encourage future defections meant that rewarding defectors "in sometimes uncomfortable ways" was justified. ConservativeHome asked the question following the defection […]
Lots of advice for the Conservative Party in today’s media. Both David Davis and Fraser Nelson wisely warn against any triumphalism. The polls are good but we’ve already underestimated Gordon Brown once; we’d be prudent not to do so again. His political reputation has been badly damaged – particularly, and significantly, among opinion-formers – but […]
The self-described "oldest, most elite, and most important of all Conservative clubs" will retain its membership rules after modernisers didn’t get enough votes to reform them. Led by current Chairman Lord Cope of Berkeley, who is also the Conservatives’ Chief Whip in the Lords, most votes were in favour of the change but they didn’t […]
Continue reading this post to read an email from Don Porter, Chairman of the National Convention, to Regional Chairmen about the Party Board’s decision on the MEP selection process. The details are as we have already reported, although on a personal note he says that David Cameron is fully behind the decisions made and of […]
In his excellent speech on civility of yesterday, David Cameron said this: "A responsible society is one in which people feel a strong sense of control over their lives. That is why we are also committed to transferring power from central government to local institutions… When people are directly involved in something, they feel a […]
"The Board of the Conservative Party has reached a decision in principle on the method for selection of candidates for the European Parliament for the 2009 election. Sitting MEPs who have been re-selected following a procedure similar to that laid down in the Party’s constitution for Westminster MPs will be placed in ranking order by […]
Last night a high level Conservative source contacted ConservativeHome with a ‘clarification’ of the procedures via which the next slate of regional list MEPs will be selected (if agreed by the Party Board this coming Monday). These are the crucial facts: Only MEPs who irrevocably commit to David Cameron’s EPP exit commitment will be entitled […]
The lobbying effort against the plan to protect incumbent MEPs is beginning to bear some fruit. Jeremy Middleton has assured one ConservativeHome correspondent that he will be voting to protect members’ rights with regard to the selection of all MEPs. Thank you Jeremy. He will be one party board member that won’t be vulnerable to […]
How well does this semi-parodic catchphrase used by some CCHQers match up when it comes to Party democracy? Charles Moore in this week’s Spectator: "Meanwhile, the Conservative party continues its devotion to openness, localism and modernised democracy in everything except its own organisation. The party has a little-known body called the National European Forum which […]
"Dear David, You will know that ConservativeHome successfully helped to lead opposition to Michael Howard’s attempts to scrap party members’ right to elect his successor. Given how members voted in the last leadership election I’m sure you will agree that members are wiser than many of their critics suggest! I am writing to ask you […]
Oliver Letwin was on GMTV this morning, saying that the Party still had a lot of work to do in being open to women and ethnic minorities. Responding to grassroots unrest in Mercer’s constituency, Letwin asserted that the Conservative Party was comprised of its voters as well as its members, and that they should be […]
The nominations for the National Convention’s elected positions have been finalised. Successful nominees also sit on the Party Board ex officio. Current Chairman Don Porter CBE, a Deputy Chairman of the Party and former President of the Convention, has for the second time been the only person to apply for the Chairmanship and has therefore […]
I’m not sure how often Bruce Anderson gets up from the lunch tables of London’s finest restaurants and actually meets grassroots Conservatives but my guess is not very often. Trying to explain David Cameron’s modest opinion poll lead he decides to blame Conservative Party members for the party’s troubles in his Monday column for The […]