Yesterday, a group of TRG members joined local activists in Lewes, Sussex, for a campaign day in support of local candidate, Jason Sugarman.
Jason is attempting to overturn the majority of 8,500 held by Liberal-Democrat Norman Baker MP and if effort and natural ability are any guide, Jason should pull through at the next election! Key local issues involve parking within Lewes and the planned development of an incinerator plant in Newhaven.
The day started with Jason and his team of local supporters running a very professional-stall in Lewes market while the rest of us began a leaflet drop, which we kept working at until darkness fell. By the end of the day we had distributed the best part of 10,000 leaflets across Lewes and Newhaven.
Many thanks to all of those that made us feel welcome in Lewes, in particular, local agent, Charlotte Beaupere and Carola Godman Law, Chairman of Lewes Conservative Association, and all of those that helped guide us, drive us around and for providing lunch to some hungry TRG members!
This was the first time that we have worked to support local candidates like this, but the TRG hopes to take part in more events of this kind in future. The only problem is that there are so many good candidates out there, it is hard to know where we should go!
Whatever else we do, we wish the best of luck to Jason and all of the members of Lewes Conservative Association - we have every confidence you will be able to deliver a superb new member of parliament at the next election!
A couple of MPs, many representing fairly good majorities, have planned for some time to retire over the next few years. One of the consequences of the resent hype around the possibility of a general election was that some of them had delayed any announcement about their intention to stand down just in case they needed to stand again at short notice.
This morning, however, one sign that Brown has now no option to call an early election is the announcement that one MP will not be standing again, Ann Widdecombe.
Ann is a great Member of Parliament and popular with the Conservative Party. She has a personality that stands out among her fellow MPs and will be missed after the next election, whenever it may be.
So, we now know the results from the Ealing Southall by-election. It may not have been what had hoped for, a second place would have been nice. However, with voters always likely to give Brown a chance now he has finally taken the top job, it was never likely to be a victory opportunity. In spite of this, the Tory vote held up well and the defection of five Labour councillors has meant Ealing is now a top target in the next local elections in three years time.
However, we do now have a moment to reflect on the candidate, Tony Lit.
He attracted some criticism form a variety of quarters. Tom Watson’s blog, tried to smear Tony by saying that he was not on the local election register, only to realise that their own Labour Party had reformed election law to allow candidates to stand using their given name, in this case Tony, while still appearing on the rolls under their full name. More egg on Tom’s face than Tony’s, there.
Tony was also criticised for posing with a photo of Tony Blair. Well, to be fair to him, at the time he was not a Conservative Party candidate but Managing Director of Sunrise Radio. It was the company that had taken the table at what was a local business association dinner at which Blair happened to be the speaker. There is nothing untoward there. If his shareholders were to get value from their marketing spend, getting access to the encumbant Prime Minister and the resulting press release photo, posing with him was a requirement not a betrayal.
A number of TRG members took part in helping one way or another during the election. I was there on election day and was pleased to see what looked like a very hard-working candidate, busily handing out leaflets at the local tube station. Other reports suggest he did a good all round job, particular considering this was his first attempt.
Tony Lit typifies the kind of successful, hard-working kind of candidate the party needs if it is to broaden its appeal. Much of the criticism he attracted over the election period was unjustified and he remains a good benchmark for future candidates.
We wish him well wherever he goes next.
The word is that Boris has decided to run as a candidate for London Mayor.
It is understandable from Boris’ point of view. He is a personality with a reputation that goes far beyond Westminster and this is the highest directly-elected office in the land; the one where personal reputation is more important than anything else?
But what does it mean for London? Well, the main point is likely to be the effect it will have on the election itself. Firstly, throughout the primary format that will lead to the selection will now attract vastly more media coverage than it might otherwise have done. With luck, this will achieve some of the party’s aims in employing such a system: namely, underlining the newly open nature of the party and the opportunity for non-party members to participate increasing the chances of selecting a candidate with mass appeal.
Something similar will no doubt happen during the full election if Boris is selected. Ken Livingstone has been a good and bad thing for London. His very forceful personality has enabled him to shape the job and give it more clout than a weaker personality may have done. But that same trait has led him to some dreadful and embarressing decisions, some of which we have previously discussed on this blog.
Taking on Ken needs a big personality, too, and Boris has that. Whatever else happens, you can guarantee Boris and Ken will grab the headlines. If you were a Lib Dem, you’d have to worry about being squeezed, though.
The story has been revealed that Greg Dyke, formerly of the BBC, has considered running for London Mayor.
However, a key detail is not being widely reported by the press and that is that Dyke approached the Conservative Party, not the other way around.
Dyke’s idea was based on his disillusionment as a long-term Labour Party supporter and (I believe) donor. He wanted to stand as an independent and had asked the Lib-Dems and the Tories to endorse him while not putting forward anyone of their own.
It was wise of the Conservative leadership not to dismiss a successful figure with wide name recognition, like Greg Dyke, out of hand. The Lib-Dems are apparently not able to entertain the idea because of limits in their constitution, but with no such limits on the Tories it is right that the party leadership considered all of the options.
In the end, I think it would have been wrong if we had chosen to be part of this plan, but it would have been worse to have said no without thinking.
A story that made it out in the dead of New Year, was that three prominent Lib Dem candidates have defected to the Tories. The most prominent of these is arguably Richard Porter, “who wrote the Liberal Democrat manifesto for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community [ghastly phrase] in the 2005 general election.”
Francis Maude has endorsed all of them, it appears, and it will be interesting to see if they make it onto the “A” list. It is always a good sign of the mood on the doorstep when candidates start moving party to increase their electoral chances.
So the Conservative Party has decided to run a form of open primary to help select its candidate for London Mayor.
Primaries have their supporters, but opinion on the ground appears to be mixed so we thought we would run a poll to see what readers of this blog think.
If you want some more information before you vote there is a summary of the proposals on the BBC News site here.
Well done to Bob Neill on being selected as the candidate for the upcoming Bromley and Chislehurst by-election. See the BBC story here.
Bob has twice been elected to represent the area on the Greater London Assembly. He is just the sort of strong local candidate that the TRG believes the exceptions to the “A-list” rules were designed to encompass.
His selection is not a “blow” against the concept of the A-list at all, contrary to some media comment. Two strong members of the A-list made it to the final round of the selection proving there were strong, viable candidates on the list - just what was intended.
