Monday, November 12, 2007












More help from the front bench

Another two high profile shadow ministers here this month

It's so interesting to see how our party behind the scenes has also changed under David Cameron.

For one thing the party has it's confidence back in a big way. No longer are we allowing others to set the agenda, we are talking about the topics we want to and setting out our ideas without fear of having them twisted into a mockery by our opponents spin machinery. For another, shadow cabinet members have stepped outside the Westminster village that they were so fond of from 1997 onwards and taken to the road in a big way.

That is why a number of high profile Tories have trod the path down to the bay this year, including Mr C himself, on two occasions.

This week welcomed the charming and intelligent Andrew Mitchell to look at the new Paignton Library proposals and last week saw the very famous and highly influential Michael Gove here to check out our education plans.

Partly this change has come because of a conscious effort by the leadership to leave the famous 'bubble' of Parliament and make sure that more time is spent meeting the electorate, partly it reflects the new-found confidence of the shadow cabinet themselves, partly it is because Nick Bye is the only directly elected Conservative mayor but mostly it reflects the growing conviction that Torbay is a win at the next election; everyone wants to do their bit to help, and be seen to be helping.

It's very interesting to compare and contrast the interest in the Bay from senior Conservatives to the number of senior Lib Dems who have been down in the last year or two.

Exactly no one, I think.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

.."very famous" Michael Gove - you're having a laugh Marcus. You'd be lucky if 1 in 50 of the bay's populace recognised him ! As for the 'other bloke' no-one's heard of him outside Tory circles.

I see from Westphalia Excess that you think locals will vote for you the more you attack Mr Sanders and the Lib Dems.

We know you don't like the Libs but that's hardly a reason to vote FOR you or your party. For a careerist politician with no track record in local government that you've got so little to say is frankly startling. Wise up Marcus, say what your for [if anything] even at this late stage.

Anonymous said...

Your regular Liberal irritant on here - the other Mr Wood - posts a letter to the Herald about Con Euro policy and your reply says nothing about Europe but lots about what you see as Lib failings. Very poor Marcus - very poor.

Does Con Euro policy go far enough ? Shouldn't we pull out of the EU altogether ? Who'd have thought the Liberals would offer this prospect via referendum whilst the Tories have nothing worthwhile to say !!

Anonymous said...

Flippin' sensitive your opponents down there aren't they?

Anonymous said...

"All I said was, that piece of Halibut was good enough for Jehovah..."