Jackie Doyle-Price is a former Health Minister, and is MP for Thurrock.
Two catastrophic by-elections and the resignation of a Party Chairman ought to be enough to focus minds on taking decisive action to restore the Conservative Party.
The reputational damage caused by bad behaviour needs to be arrested and for that the buck sits squarely with the Prime Minister.
It isn’t just about Partygate though. Its about having a Government that is recognisably Conservative. And these by-elections should be the wake up call to Ministers to get a grip, and give the public good reasons to vote for us.
It is often observed that political parties fight the last election and not the one in front of them. “Boris is popular, right. And we are getting Brexit done. Lets just remind everyone of that”. Not enough, I’m afraid. We need a clear and coherent narrative that sets out our vision for Britain and our promises to the public. And that narrative needs to go beyond Brexit.
When the public voted to Get Brexit Done, what it actually wanted was Brexit Gone. The nation was collectively sick of hearing about it. It had made its decision more than three years earlier. Yes, it wanted the political establishment to deliver on what was promised, and to implement the result of the referendum. But most had simply had enough of hearing about it. Brexit be gone.
Getting Brexit done should now about our position in the world. Our role as a beacon of liberty, an advocate of free trade and a global leader against oppression. A forward-looking agenda which represents pride and promise simply isn’t being conveyed by our messaging.
We have a real issue with complacency too. Some colleagues are taking rather too much comfort about Keir Starmer is not cutting through. It is true that there no love for Labour. My worry is there is no fear of them either. In 2019, there was genuine fear of a Corbyn-led Government which is simply no longer present. Labour don’t need to inspire anyone. If we don’t inspire anyone to vote for us, we will not win.
You just need to look at what happened to Labour post-1997. Their vote fell quicker than the Conservatives’ rose. David Cameron was able to lead the largest party in 2010 with less than 11 million votes – in 2015, he even secured a Parliamentary majority with less than the 12.8m votes won by Jeremy Corbyn just two years later. Even in 2019, Corbyn achieved more votes than Blair did in 2005.
We need to motivate people to vote for us. We seem to have lost our belief in sound money and lower taxes in favour of throwing taxpayers’ money at problems. Is it any wonder conservative voters stayed at home on Thursday when our policies are going so off-brand?
The public aren’t stupid. We can afford to be honest with them. War in Ukraine, Covid disruption and energy prices will make us all worse off. There is no escaping that. They understand that taxpayers bear the cost. They know that the money being thrown around to support energy bills will end up on their taxes.
As a Conservative I am becoming increasingly disappointed by this Government’s constant defining itself by how much it is spending as if it were the measure of success. We should be defined by what we deliver, not by how much things cost. And we shouldn’t be shy about saying that we want people to be able to keep more of what they earn.
If we are proud Conservatives, we shouldn’t be afraid to express our core beliefs and principles. We know they are the Best for Britain, and we should articulate it. Leadership is inspired by confidence and belief. Leadership is not about following the herd and being a slave to what focus groups tell you. One way or another, we need to reset a confident forward looking agenda for our country.
One which has ambition for us to be the best. Against a Labour Party that constantly talks our great nation down. An agenda that gives everyone opportunity to be the best they can be. Against a Labour Party that spreads division and envy. We need to rise to the challenges of the future instead of contenting ourselves with winning the battles of the past. That is, if we want a future as a Party of Government.
Jackie Doyle-Price is a former Health Minister, and is MP for Thurrock.
Two catastrophic by-elections and the resignation of a Party Chairman ought to be enough to focus minds on taking decisive action to restore the Conservative Party.
The reputational damage caused by bad behaviour needs to be arrested and for that the buck sits squarely with the Prime Minister.
It isn’t just about Partygate though. Its about having a Government that is recognisably Conservative. And these by-elections should be the wake up call to Ministers to get a grip, and give the public good reasons to vote for us.
It is often observed that political parties fight the last election and not the one in front of them. “Boris is popular, right. And we are getting Brexit done. Lets just remind everyone of that”. Not enough, I’m afraid. We need a clear and coherent narrative that sets out our vision for Britain and our promises to the public. And that narrative needs to go beyond Brexit.
When the public voted to Get Brexit Done, what it actually wanted was Brexit Gone. The nation was collectively sick of hearing about it. It had made its decision more than three years earlier. Yes, it wanted the political establishment to deliver on what was promised, and to implement the result of the referendum. But most had simply had enough of hearing about it. Brexit be gone.
Getting Brexit done should now about our position in the world. Our role as a beacon of liberty, an advocate of free trade and a global leader against oppression. A forward-looking agenda which represents pride and promise simply isn’t being conveyed by our messaging.
We have a real issue with complacency too. Some colleagues are taking rather too much comfort about Keir Starmer is not cutting through. It is true that there no love for Labour. My worry is there is no fear of them either. In 2019, there was genuine fear of a Corbyn-led Government which is simply no longer present. Labour don’t need to inspire anyone. If we don’t inspire anyone to vote for us, we will not win.
You just need to look at what happened to Labour post-1997. Their vote fell quicker than the Conservatives’ rose. David Cameron was able to lead the largest party in 2010 with less than 11 million votes – in 2015, he even secured a Parliamentary majority with less than the 12.8m votes won by Jeremy Corbyn just two years later. Even in 2019, Corbyn achieved more votes than Blair did in 2005.
We need to motivate people to vote for us. We seem to have lost our belief in sound money and lower taxes in favour of throwing taxpayers’ money at problems. Is it any wonder conservative voters stayed at home on Thursday when our policies are going so off-brand?
The public aren’t stupid. We can afford to be honest with them. War in Ukraine, Covid disruption and energy prices will make us all worse off. There is no escaping that. They understand that taxpayers bear the cost. They know that the money being thrown around to support energy bills will end up on their taxes.
As a Conservative I am becoming increasingly disappointed by this Government’s constant defining itself by how much it is spending as if it were the measure of success. We should be defined by what we deliver, not by how much things cost. And we shouldn’t be shy about saying that we want people to be able to keep more of what they earn.
If we are proud Conservatives, we shouldn’t be afraid to express our core beliefs and principles. We know they are the Best for Britain, and we should articulate it. Leadership is inspired by confidence and belief. Leadership is not about following the herd and being a slave to what focus groups tell you. One way or another, we need to reset a confident forward looking agenda for our country.
One which has ambition for us to be the best. Against a Labour Party that constantly talks our great nation down. An agenda that gives everyone opportunity to be the best they can be. Against a Labour Party that spreads division and envy. We need to rise to the challenges of the future instead of contenting ourselves with winning the battles of the past. That is, if we want a future as a Party of Government.