By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter When Peter Oborne takes up a cause he does so with all guns blazing. He takes no prisoners. There's no grey in his world – only black and only white. He is never knowingly understated. He's not always consistent either. His target today was Lynton Crosby. Apparently if Cameron […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter A strategist isn't a Chief of Staff. James Forsyth confirms in today's Spectator that Downing Street wants to bring in Lynton Crosby. However, it isn't clear what Number 10 wants him to do. Some seem to believe that he should run the whole Downing Street operation. This is to […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter Last week unemployment fell, employment rose. Inflation fell. Crime fell again. The deficit numbers were better than expected. Theresa May – to public acclaim – stopped the extradition of Gary McKinnon, fulfilling a pre-election Tory promise. Yes: Politician. Delivers. Promise.
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter How to be successful on Twitter Anyone who cares to can have their own definition of how to be successful on Twitter. Mine is: the writer's tweets must give a sense of his personality. You must get more across to your audience via the vast broadcast system that is […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter Alastair Campbell gives David Cameron the following advice behind today's Times paywall, having claimed that Mr Cameron, who has come late to Twitter, thinks that he should get on television over every issue: "On the contrary, he should be setting his own agenda, on his own terms. Successful communication […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter I can't remember a Cameron speech that has had such a good response from the whole centre right… The Sun calls it "impressive and statesmanlike". The Telegraph praised it as "uncomplicated and distinctively Conservative". Tory modernisers and mainstreamers both applauded. Ian Birrell described it as "a definition of modern […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter Yesterday David Cameron went to Manchester to pay tribute to the two women police officers murdered in the line of duty (here's a video). He was as statesmanlike as in his recent Commons statement about police corruption at the time of the Hillsborough tragedy. Today the Chairman of the […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter The culture of the Conservative Parliamentary Party is changing… Half of all Conservative MPs were elected for the first time at the last election, and Tory backbenchers have rebelled more since it took place than in any previous post-war Parliament. These two facts suggest that a new factor has […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter "Osborne won't mastermind Cameron's next election campaign" says the New Statesman, following up on this morning Mail story, which declared that: "George Osborne will not take charge of the Conservatives’ 2015 election campaign – allowing him to concentrate on trying to revive the economy." The news in Tim Shipman's […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter Cameron should be willing to move Hague and May in order to get Cable out of the Business portfolio and David Laws appointed in his place. Most reshuffles don't matter. But this one does. That is the premise of my piece in today's Daily Telegraph, though I also write […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter The Evening Standard's excellent Joe Murphy is sometimes a means for politicians to get out news that helps them as quickly as possible. So it may be in this case. The paper's Political Editor has tweeted that Baroness Warsi has been cleared by the Lords Commissioner over allegations made […]
By Tim MontgomerieFollow Tim on Twitter David Cameron writes for this morning's Sunday Times (£) and sets out why the Coalition still has a uniting purpose. Two paragraphs stand out to me. One in which he set out some core beliefs and another in which he set out the Coalition's main achievements (so far). THE […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter The head of the civil service wants Spads to report to mandarins as well as Ministers… In his subversive account of the fall of the Conservative Party during the 1990s, "Guilty Men", Hwyel Williams draws a verbal cartoon of the special advisers (Spads) of the period, comparing them to […]
By Paul GoodmanFollow Paul on Twitter Guido Fawkes's news that Sean Worth is to leave Downing Street to join Policy Exchange names the latest addition to a growing list. And, yes, you read that correctly: Mr Worth, a special adviser, is going to Policy Exchange – not the other way round, as one might reasonably […]