Post by mcf on Oct 7, 2014 16:13:19 GMT
Hi,
Here is a second article.
Tim Montgomerie, the man who takes the Conservative pulse
ConservativeHome, the voice of the party's members, is creating panic in Downing Street
Toby Helm, political editor
The Observer, Sunday 12 February 2012
Article history
Tim Montgomerie: 'ConservativeHome is like a party conference that never stops.' Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Observer
On Thursday evening Tim Montgomerie picked up the telephone and politely told a member of David Cameron's team that he was about to hurl a political grenade at Downing St. "They were disappointed," said the calm editor of the ConservativeHome website 24 hours later, as the govern ment tried to repair the damage.
Montgomerie, 42, claims to have been surprised at the media impact of his intervention on NHS reform, made in a "ConHome" editorial. But in Downing St, and over the road at the Department of Health, the moment they heard it was on its way the panic set in.
ConHome is the much-readmodern voice of the Tory party in the country, a hyperactive website full of freewheeling discussion about policies and personalities, but one that is normally strongly loyal to the cause. In a party traditionally run from the centre, ConHome has steadily built its influence by linking a previously remote and largely voiceless Conservative grassroots movement straight into the heart of Westminster debate.
"ConservativeHome is like a party conference that never stops," says Montgomerie, who set it up in 2005. "It is open for everyone to see and take part in. I think that means the Conservative party in the country matters in a way that otherwise would not have been true."
Friday was its biggest moment by far. Montgomerie's lethal editorial calling for the government to scrap its health and social care bill – the biggest piece of public service legislation passing through parliament – unleashed instant havoc in government. So powerful is his website that three Tory cabinet ministers had contacted Montgomerie urging him to leak news that they wanted the bill to be dropped. The three urged him, strongly, to go public and kill it. The result, the ministers would have known, would be doubly devastating. As the story would break "on ConHome", it would be seen as part grassroots rebellion, part cabinet revolt – a deadly combination that has duly left health secretary Andrew Lansley fighting for survival.
In the eyes of most MPs, Montgomerie, a former chief of staff to Iain Duncan Smith, is now one of the most influential Tories outside the cabinet. "If any Tory tells you they don't read ConservativeHome, they are lying. It is hugely important," said a young Tory MP. But influence has come at a price. No sooner had Montgomerie launched his assault on the health bill than "friends of Lansley" were quoted on political websites attacking him in vicious terms. "Tim's sole achievement in politics was to be chief of staff to the most unpopular leader in Conservative history, so forgive us if we don't take any lessons from him," one "ally of Lansley" was quoted as saying. "He clearly wants to take the party back to the bad old days of constant infighting and no policy. He should stick to talking about gay marriage and leave serious issues like the NHS to the grown-ups."
Montgomerie insists he can take it. He wants the whole party to debate policy in an open way. Despite the flak, he is completely unrepentant over his NHS assault. He is convinced Lansley has to be removed, but fears the party will not drop the bill. "I think they will soldier on. I think, wrongly, that they think the humiliation of retreating is the greater problem. It is certainly the one that is more acute and more difficult in the short term, but it is the chronic problem they should be worried about. Everything that goes wrong in the NHS will be blamed on this bill for years to come, even though it is the huge cost squeeze that is the real problem."
Montgomerie has a complex blend of Tory views that makes him difficult to pigeonhole as either from the traditional right or left. His range of opinions also make it difficult for the Tory leadership to keep tabs on him. "We have argued there is no contradiction between saying we should have tax support for marriage while at the same time being a party that respects gay rights," he says. "We say we need a tough approach to immigration, yet should care about the hungry and the poorest people in the world. We need a big armed forces, but should not be selling arms to despotic regimes." He says Cameron has swapped one form of "narrowness" (he cites Michael Howard's tough line on immigration) for another, with his emphasis on women candidates and the environment.
"ConHome" boasts several successes. "We campaigned [in 2005] against plans to exclude party members from leadership elections. We were a big part of defeating that. Then we helped to campaign against all-women shortlists and bring the idea of the candidates' 'A-list' into disrepute," he says. Now he has launched the biggest campaign of all.
The website boasts 250,000 unique users a year compared with about a tenth of that six years ago. Friday was a record day. Paul Goodman, the former Tory MP who is now executive editor at ConservativeHome, says it has a wide appeal because it is a broad church. He also suggests it is popular because it is allowing the membership to assert itself after years of being trampled on. The internet has changed the balance of power. "Party leaderships have been centralising power for a very long time," Goodman said. "Activists have thus lost venues in which to voice their views – and opportunities to shape the parties that are ultimately their property. I wouldn't dare to claim that we represent anyone, but we do provide a venue and thus opportunities for Tory activists." And a problem for David Cameron.
Hope this helps. ;D
Here is a second article.
Tim Montgomerie, the man who takes the Conservative pulse
ConservativeHome, the voice of the party's members, is creating panic in Downing Street
Toby Helm, political editor
The Observer, Sunday 12 February 2012
Article history
Tim Montgomerie: 'ConservativeHome is like a party conference that never stops.' Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Observer
On Thursday evening Tim Montgomerie picked up the telephone and politely told a member of David Cameron's team that he was about to hurl a political grenade at Downing St. "They were disappointed," said the calm editor of the ConservativeHome website 24 hours later, as the govern ment tried to repair the damage.
Montgomerie, 42, claims to have been surprised at the media impact of his intervention on NHS reform, made in a "ConHome" editorial. But in Downing St, and over the road at the Department of Health, the moment they heard it was on its way the panic set in.
ConHome is the much-readmodern voice of the Tory party in the country, a hyperactive website full of freewheeling discussion about policies and personalities, but one that is normally strongly loyal to the cause. In a party traditionally run from the centre, ConHome has steadily built its influence by linking a previously remote and largely voiceless Conservative grassroots movement straight into the heart of Westminster debate.
"ConservativeHome is like a party conference that never stops," says Montgomerie, who set it up in 2005. "It is open for everyone to see and take part in. I think that means the Conservative party in the country matters in a way that otherwise would not have been true."
Friday was its biggest moment by far. Montgomerie's lethal editorial calling for the government to scrap its health and social care bill – the biggest piece of public service legislation passing through parliament – unleashed instant havoc in government. So powerful is his website that three Tory cabinet ministers had contacted Montgomerie urging him to leak news that they wanted the bill to be dropped. The three urged him, strongly, to go public and kill it. The result, the ministers would have known, would be doubly devastating. As the story would break "on ConHome", it would be seen as part grassroots rebellion, part cabinet revolt – a deadly combination that has duly left health secretary Andrew Lansley fighting for survival.
In the eyes of most MPs, Montgomerie, a former chief of staff to Iain Duncan Smith, is now one of the most influential Tories outside the cabinet. "If any Tory tells you they don't read ConservativeHome, they are lying. It is hugely important," said a young Tory MP. But influence has come at a price. No sooner had Montgomerie launched his assault on the health bill than "friends of Lansley" were quoted on political websites attacking him in vicious terms. "Tim's sole achievement in politics was to be chief of staff to the most unpopular leader in Conservative history, so forgive us if we don't take any lessons from him," one "ally of Lansley" was quoted as saying. "He clearly wants to take the party back to the bad old days of constant infighting and no policy. He should stick to talking about gay marriage and leave serious issues like the NHS to the grown-ups."
Montgomerie insists he can take it. He wants the whole party to debate policy in an open way. Despite the flak, he is completely unrepentant over his NHS assault. He is convinced Lansley has to be removed, but fears the party will not drop the bill. "I think they will soldier on. I think, wrongly, that they think the humiliation of retreating is the greater problem. It is certainly the one that is more acute and more difficult in the short term, but it is the chronic problem they should be worried about. Everything that goes wrong in the NHS will be blamed on this bill for years to come, even though it is the huge cost squeeze that is the real problem."
Montgomerie has a complex blend of Tory views that makes him difficult to pigeonhole as either from the traditional right or left. His range of opinions also make it difficult for the Tory leadership to keep tabs on him. "We have argued there is no contradiction between saying we should have tax support for marriage while at the same time being a party that respects gay rights," he says. "We say we need a tough approach to immigration, yet should care about the hungry and the poorest people in the world. We need a big armed forces, but should not be selling arms to despotic regimes." He says Cameron has swapped one form of "narrowness" (he cites Michael Howard's tough line on immigration) for another, with his emphasis on women candidates and the environment.
"ConHome" boasts several successes. "We campaigned [in 2005] against plans to exclude party members from leadership elections. We were a big part of defeating that. Then we helped to campaign against all-women shortlists and bring the idea of the candidates' 'A-list' into disrepute," he says. Now he has launched the biggest campaign of all.
The website boasts 250,000 unique users a year compared with about a tenth of that six years ago. Friday was a record day. Paul Goodman, the former Tory MP who is now executive editor at ConservativeHome, says it has a wide appeal because it is a broad church. He also suggests it is popular because it is allowing the membership to assert itself after years of being trampled on. The internet has changed the balance of power. "Party leaderships have been centralising power for a very long time," Goodman said. "Activists have thus lost venues in which to voice their views – and opportunities to shape the parties that are ultimately their property. I wouldn't dare to claim that we represent anyone, but we do provide a venue and thus opportunities for Tory activists." And a problem for David Cameron.
Hope this helps. ;D