- Last night I spent a very pleasant evening addressing the Curzon Supper Club organised by Surry Heath Conservatives. I had to ditch some of my usual jokes as there were a few people there who have heard me speak before! Whenever I go to local Tory party dos I always try to be fairly informal and not speak for too long, as I always enjoy the questions more than making a speech. Last night's questions were particularly incisive and one or two were very difficult to answer concisely - or honestly! Who would I vote for, Bercow or Farage? Should Ken Clarke be Chancellor? What strategy would I now advise David Cameron to adopt to ensure the election is won? On that one I said that as I have never actually won an election, I'm not sure I am the best person to offer advice to him...! Anyway, the Lightwater blog has a write up of the evening, complete with a picture that makes me realise I had better restart the diet...
- Yesterday, Suffolk Coastal Conservatives met at CCHQ to draw up their shortlist to succeed John Gummer. The hoped for phone call telling me I had made it never came, so when I saw the actual shortlist on ConHome today it didn't come as a surprise. That may well be curtains for me. It was the last seat operating by the old rules. All other seats are now being selected by the new system in which Eric Pickles nominates a shortlist of at least three. It has already been made clear that the same names will not keep cropping up in this process (and rightly so) so if I get one chance, I'd better make sure I take it.
- I've had to spend most of the morning doing my tax return. Why do I always leave it until the last minute? It's not as if it comes as a surprise.
- I'm doing the Sky News paper reviews this evening at 10.30 and 11.30. I wonder who my partner in crime will be - hopefully Yasmin A-B. I can imagine her self combusting about Blair's evidence.
- I see the Richard Kay column in the Mail is predicting that David Davis wants to succeed Boris as London Mayor. Where do they get these preposterous ideas from? Or do they just make them up? I can imagine the roar of laughter I will hear when I raise it with DD.
- This afternoon I am starting to read the Why Vote series of books which Biteback are publishing at the beginning of March. There's one for each of the main three parties, the Greens, UKIP, Plaid and the SNP. We considered doing a Why Vote BNP book, in which all the pages would be blank. :). The books will be very short and priced very low and are aimed at floating voters and those who wish to better inform themselves about the different parties' policies.
political commentator * author * publisher * bookseller * radio presenter * blogger * Conservative candidate * former lobbyist * Jack Russell owner * West Ham United fanatic * Email iain AT iaindale DOT com
Shame re Suffolk Coastal. As a non-Conservative, your inability to get selected just shows how far away from reality they are living - which party would leave out such an able communicator?
ReplyDeleteIn response to your "Why Vote BNP" book snipe. You have only got to look at the BNP web site (policies page) to see that they are probably the only party whose policies are most in line with what the average British punter really thinks and really wants (and that includes many British people of colour). Unfortunately I can't bring myself to vote for the BNP either so, for the first time in 30+ years I won't be voting at all. PS Dave blew it on Europe for me and I suspect many disaffected others.
ReplyDeleteYou had better diet quick, sorry to say it, but you're morphing into Eric Pickles (that's not all bad BTW)
ReplyDeleteAlas, Iain, having looked at the admittedly poor photo on the Lightwater blog, I can see why you were asked about election strategy: someone thought you looked like Eric Pickles!
ReplyDeleteCommiserations on not receiving the hoped-for phone call.
Why Vote Mebyon Kernow?
ReplyDeleteHe might buy you a drink and he isn't an 'out' LibDem or Green.
And there we have it. Very short and could be priced very low indeed.
DD must stay in the Commons.When the stabilisers fall off the liner dave sound heads will be needed.
ReplyDeleteWhat about daves mate hilton for Mayor?
Talking about tax returns. I rented my house out during 08/09 tax year, so I know I owe Gordon a bit of tax. Since early January I have been trying to register for a tax return but too no success. I phoned the IR up and was put on hold for hours, eventually I was told to contact my local tax office. I tried calling them and the phone just rang. I got so fed up so I went in to my local tax office and demanded to be registed . They said you must do it online which I tried but its impossible.
ReplyDeleteI am just trying to pay my taxes but they just don’t make it easy. Banana republic
Commiserations over Suffolk.
ReplyDeleteCongrats, however, for for a good night out at Surrey Heath.In fact, it was a very good evening - good food, good company and a star performer for fifteen quid!
You did a twitter on the way home. I hope someone else was driving!
My wife and I came from a neighbouring constituency, so we didn't know anyone. But we picked up, in a friendly crowd, that their MP Michael Gove is popular. But more interestingly, so is David Cameron, despite the current sniping "narrative" from Tory commentators. The Coffee House mob from the Spectator are definitely out of touch with rank and file members.
Thanks again Iain and the Surrey Heathers for a vey enjoyable night out.
Why not stand as an independent candidate ? I'm sure you'll get plenty of publicity and you've got access to a printing press. Or can't you afford the 500 quid deposit.
ReplyDelete"Who would I vote for, Bercow or Farage?"
ReplyDeleteSince it looks like that's exactly my choice shortly, I’d be interested in your answer.
"The books will be very short"
ReplyDeleteHardly suprising, eh? You'd probably get the 'reasons' on the back of a postcard.
Richard Kay is the WORST featured journalist on Fleet Street; he owes EVERYTHING to the fact that the late Princess of Wales took a shine to him,feeding him titbits and self serving gossip, which he and the credulous lapped up. His Daily Mail column is a perpetual memorial to her insidious propaganda war and the gullibility of the British public. On objective grounds, to use a cliche, it is piss poor.
ReplyDeleteSuffolk Coastal is very similar to SW norfolk, so how would you have essayed the concerns of Suffolk coastal voters, and any opposing candidate worth their salt would have continually played on the the "turnip taliban" stuff even if you didnt coin it,and shown that you were in touch with the local people and their concerns, and werent just another "townie" CCO candidate forced on another rural local association again.
ReplyDeleteStono, that shows how little you know Suffolk Coastal. It is not at all similar to SW Norfolk. If it had been, I wouldn't have applied.
ReplyDeleteOh, and to call me a townie is hilarious. I lived in London from 1987 to 1997. Otherwise I have always lived in the country. And do so now.
Iain,
ReplyDeleteIn the interests of fairness I hope you mention UKIP's policies of which there are quite a few.
Today was the launch of transport and recently we've published welfare plus pensions:
http://www.ukip.org/content/ukip-policies/1430-transport-ukip-policy
Sorry you missed Suffolk Coastal I might have voted for you. Most of the shortlist look like people placed for the benefit of the party, not for the constituents, and will be treated accordingly.
ReplyDeleteLol...Alibaba Brown full of shit as usual.
ReplyDelete@ ukipwebmaster said...
ReplyDelete"In the interests of fairness I hope you mention UKIP's policies of which there are quite a few."
Ah yes, the Farage pygmies are seeking to be the middle class BNP. Sorry lads, no cigar...again.
Now listen here Me. Dale. I've already given you my professional advice. In case you've forgotten, here it is again:
ReplyDeleteEAT LESS.
MOVE MORE.
You may send my normal consultancy fee to the usual address. Guineas, naturally.
Why Vote BNP?
ReplyDeleteHow about because they are the only anti-Nazi party in Britain.
That while the official parties all support indeed are involved in criminal wars, genocide, ethnic cleansing, the sexual enslavement of children & dissectiong people to sell the body parts, all to assist unrepentent (ex-)Nazis only the BNP has had the courage to say that such things are wrong.
http://bnp.org.uk/2008/04/kosovo-kidnapped-serbs-were-killed-for-body-parts-claims-war-crimes-prosecutor/
Re Suffolk Coastal: I would have thought that the intelligence of Mr Dale would have prevailed by now.
ReplyDeleteIt is unfortunate that he is, and always has been, used by the Tory party to their best advantage.
Sure they will play the game, from time to time let him participate in the selection process, but they will never actually let him gain a seat.
Dale being the No.1 political blogger in the UK is far more important to CCHQ than letting him aspire to his own ambitions, and they know that should he ever win a seat, he would not be able to maintain the level of blogging and media publicity for them that he currently does. His success in the media world guarantees his failure in the political one.
Sorry to say that if Iain Dale does not recognise just how he has been played by the Tory leadership, then he is not quite the smartest cookie that he perhaps thinks he is.
Just read Yasmin A-B's commentary in The Independent. Is there a video on the web of your interaction with her from the weekend that would be available to us in the US?
ReplyDelete