And They're Off
A press release from Ben Howlett's "Press Officer"... In TB's day people sent their own pres... ok ok he won't start:
At 5pm this afternoon an email was sent to the Conservative Party Co-Chairmen Baroness Warsi and Andrew Feldman, declaring that I would be standing as a potential candidate for the position of National Chairman of Conservative Future.Interesting he chooses to discuss the positive feedback from the email sent to grassroots hacks. Not sure the Essex councillor would like to read some of the emails TB got about it. TB will let the inevitable cat-fighting run its course without fuelling the fire just yet. Apparently there is some Labour leadership contest on too. Pah.
While I know that the election has not officially been called, the campaign appears to have started in earnest. Michael Rock has had a fantastic term of office and I would be proud to succeed him.
Over the weekend an email was sent to over 600 Branch Chairman and Executive Members across the country under the message of “Conservative Future – Your Voice”. I wanted to find out what matters most to Conservative Future members across the country from Aberdeen to Brighton, Wrexham to West Cornwall. These were contact details I have collected over the last 5 years of my involvement in Conservative Future as the President of Durham University Conservative Association and as a Branch Chairman in Essex. The intention was to find out what mattered most to members before I decided to stand for the position of Chairman.
I have only had positive feedback so far, a few people have asked me “why on earth do you want to?” but even they believe I will do a good job, so I would like to take this opportunity to prove them right.
The hundreds of responses to my email so far have all been extremely valuable. These responses will become the basis of a manifesto that will enable their views to be implemented. I will continue this continual engagement by spending the following months meeting branch members across the country, asking them their concerns and ideas.
I promise that I will try my best to reinstate a grassroots organisation and creating an organisation ideologically led by the members, that is why I intend to give Conservative Future back it’s voice.
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5 comments:
Have to agree, entirely different to what we are used to, questions, no answers and some waving.
"I promise that I will try my best to reinstate a grassroots organisation and creating an organisation ideologically led by the members, that is why I intend to give Conservative Future back it’s voice."
Hah! - the youth wing of the Conservative Party lost its voice the day it changed its name from Young Conservatives to 'Conservative Future' and focused less on grass roots activism and more on how big your bank balance was and whether you were looking for a suitable future husband/wife.
I really hope that sombody can get a grip on Conservative Future (or whatever it might be called in the future)and return it to being the most effective and formidable political youth wing in the country. An organisation that knew what both it and its Party stood for and drove that message home to the voters with skill and conviction.
But then again, I always was a bit of a dreamer...
FB
Essex councillor? All I can find on Google is that he's nothing more than a town councillor... I hope he is a member of a district/county authority, as there's a massive difference serving on one of those than there is on the equivalent of a parish council. He's well within his rights to use his 'cllr' title, but if he is nothing more than a town councillor it does seem to me a bit naughty as it creates the impression - certainly to members who don't know him and are potential voters - that he is actually a serving district/county/unitary councillor. With all due respect councillors who serve on those types of authorities have a hell of a lot more responsibility than a town/parish councillor does!
Talking about 'an organisation ideologically led by the members' is all very good and well, but making the organisation focus on ideological campaigning is the very best way to end it. Remember the FCS?
Members should be given outlets, through policy fora and debating, so that they feel as though their opinions are able to be aired and heards. There should also be single-issue campaigns that unite members with the party (as NO2ID did), rather than divide them. But CF taking a corporate position that disagrees with the Conservative Party? Nah.
I bet Warsi and co where so excited to get such an important e-mail. This must have ranked second to the Queens Speech in their significant early moments of the coalition.
Seriously whats this guy about? Press officer pah, smacks of self importance. Also why does he keep e-mailing me asking for ideas? Does he have none? I am not sure he understands crowd sourcing, the point is you have your own ideas and you ask people to add to them, not just give you ideas.
E-mails, Press officers, questions and lots of waving. He must thing he is the head of state> Howlett fail.