Wednesday, October 01, 2008

David Cameron's Right Note

After the events of today I'm in no mood to provide much of a commentary on David Cameron's speech, which I have just caught up with. I agree with much of the comments on other blogs. It struck the right tone, with the right mix of vision, gravitas, meat and lightness of touch. It contrasted well with Brown's poor effort last week. I'm not sure I would agree with Tim Montgomerie that it was his best ever speech, but it did what it needed to do, and then some.

23 comments:

Straight Shooter said...

Next to Brown, a steaming pile of turd would seem competent right now. Cameron needs to glide gently into the PM slot and he knows it. No need for a smash mouth effort or any risks to be taken and he knows it.

Anonymous said...

Care to name the better speech then Ian?

DocRichard said...

Er...someone had better take a look at the Mabinogogiblog. And Dave's researchers might be well advised to take more interest in the Situations Vacant columns.

Iain Dale said...

Anonymous 9.54. Last year's.

strapworld said...

Iain, I believe this to be the best Conservative Party Leader's speech I have heard and I have listened to everyone since Winston Churchill.

The style, the delivery, the confidence and the content. Magnificent.

He showed leadership, humour and strength of character. This man will prove to be a very good Prime Minister.

I have been doubting his leadership qualities. They came out in abundance today. The reshaping of the Tories. A United party. Superb.

I have thought that Blair was the best public speaker of all leaders until today. Cameron is the man.

Brown was shown the door!

Anonymous said...

He mixed meat with gravadlax? Innovative.

Anonymous said...

Newsnight leading on the done deal that is the senate vote - uurrgghh - and pushing a pan European bail-out which automatically gives rise to the subsequent monitoring body. Typical.

Anonymous said...

BBC are pushing slaphead's "return to the future" line, suggesting Cameron wants to be a new Thatcher.
They know perfectly well that the Callaghan/Thatcher situation was simply used as an analogy for experience not trumping inexperience.

Anonymous said...

Iain, stop loving.
Start a thread.
What is your favorite political joke?
!!198 What did Monica Lewinski find when she went down on Bill?
Tony Blair Hanging out of his ass hole.
Gordon thinking who can I marry now.

Manfarang said...

Great speech!I will translate-"I have nothing to offer you than unemployment,bankruptcy and poverty."

Manfarang said...

Wasn't there a big fuss about being misquoted. Look at John Wells blog to see what he really said.
www.phon.ucl.ac.uk/home/wells/blog.htm

English spelling has a number of alternates eg yoghurt/yogurt or even yoghourt

Man in a Shed said...

Its seems to have won over the Sun.

The Sun said last night - but have since removed this line:

"Is he up to the job? The Labour-leaning BBC was not impressed . . . always a good sign."

I wonder why they had to drop that line ?

The BBC is Brown's last line of defence.

Anonymous said...

Great speech, but why did he manage to mis-use (not once, but twice) the word aggravate? I know it is a common mistake but he should know better.

Tim Carpenter said...

Glad to see Cameron has admitted to not being a Libertarian. I am certain he knew what he was saying about Libertarianism was no true, but for some reason he had to muddy the water and misrepresent Libertarianism to the point of bare-faced lies. What is he afraid of, I wonder?

niconoclast said...

Think I was wrong about Cameron.He was Gooood.(They do say confession is good for the soul....)

Anonymous said...

It was an excellent speech, pitched exactly right - no hysterics, no gloating, simply pointing out what the public has had to put up with under this dreadful government.

He reached out to all those who have been done over by New Labour: anyone in the army who has seen a comrade hurt as a result of the lack of equipment; anyone with a sick relative who has suffered as a result of NHS red tape; anyone who's been the victim of crime and then watched the police unable to do their jobs; anyone who despairs at their children's lack of a decent education.

The connection with Thatcher is not just a response to Brown's fatuous inexperience jibe (which was always easily rebutted - what experience did Blair and Brown himself have in 1997?), but also a recognition that by the next election this country will be just as much of a basket case as it was in 1979.

Britain is crying out for change and Cameron articulated the need for change. The Conservatives under David Cameron are now the political voice of the British people.

Chris Paul said...

Thought it was piss poor meeself. And to take but one example he doesn't really get "get" does he? If calling on the sceptre of Maggie is good for the Tory core it is the stuff of legend to knock the over 35 Labour core out to vote again.

NO! We do not want someone who compares themself to Thatch, or believes it reasonable to compare Brown to Callaghan.

And the anecdotes? Some retreads were there not? And an Afghan one that went nowhere much.

Sack the speech writer. Have a leadership election. Gove wants it more PM-wise.

Anonymous said...

Browns poor effort
thats not what the press said
So Cameron gave a good speech
but to state gave a poor one flies in the face of even most Tory newspaper reporters

Anonymous said...

I can hear those doctors, nurses and teachers complaining already

when are we going to lay into them

we dont need them and what do they do

privatise the lot

make people stand on their own two feet

more deregulation

Anonymous said...

Eton education pays off again
hurrahh

Anonymous said...

Manfarang said...
Great speech!I will translate-"I have nothing to offer you than unemployment,bankruptcy and poverty."

Exactly. Nail on head. But with Brown it would be much, much worse.

Anonymous said...

Chris Paul said...
...believes it reasonable to compare Brown to Callaghan.

No - it is unfair to compare Brown to Callaghan. Callaghan may have been incompetent but at least he had personal integrity.

neil craig said...

Not widely reported but in my opinion both important & courageous was his promise to cut corporation tax by 3p, bringing it down to 25p. This will not match Ireland's 12.5p which was responsible for getting a growth rate of 7% but when the Conservatives have made it clear we are not, post Brown, going to be in a position for immediate tax cuts this is as much as could have been done. In anything beyond a year 1% increased growth puts far more wealth in people's hands than 1% tax cuts but it is not as simple a sell. Note that Clegg went for the easy option despite tax uts being previously officially "illiberal".

I was not originally a Cameron fan, particularly when he seemed to be embracing "greenery" but this & the commitment to what is effectively a schools voucher system & his speech during the Glasgow East election against dependency culture make him something considerably more worthy than merely not being Labour.