In 2015 –
- 54 per cent of our members’ panel believed that the post of Party Chairman should elected by the membership.
- 86 per cent wanted the power to directly elect at least some of the Party Board
- And 50 per cent wanted the democratic power to amend the Party’s constitution.
This year –
- 56 per cent believe that the post of Party Chairman should elected by the membership.
- 70 per cent want the power to directly elect at least some of the Party Board.
- And 75 per cent believe that the Party’s leadership should be more accountable to members.
The last question isn’t like for like, but the thrust of the other answers shows that not a great deal has changed, for our panel, since the pre-Brexit, Cameron Government days of six years ago.
The composition of the panel itself has changed since then…but the first answer, on a directly-elected Chairman, has actually stood still: another tribute, as we like to say here, to the consistency of the panel.
All in all, a significant minority of activists, if the survey is right, are pretty content with their lot – somewhere between one in five and one in three, depending on the question.
A majority would like more of a say. But there is no substantial push that we’re aware of to obtain it, in a party perhaps more centralised than at any other time since the dawn of the democratic age – especially when it comes to candidate selection.