Saturday, July 01, 2006

Matthew Parris's Advice for Cameron

Matthew Parris has a typically insightful article in The Times today, which you can read HERE. Headlined WHY CAMERON NEEDS TO LISTEN TO PARRIS, THE BUTCHER FROM BROMLEY, it closes with this advice...

Village Way is still there, little-changed. It is perhaps 12 miles from Notting Hill, and yet a world away from Mr Cameron’s life, and perhaps from the outlook of many Cameron Conservatives. He needs to think about the people, young and old, who live in Village Way now. He needs to start the sentence “the next Tory Government will . . .” and consider how to complete it with (say) 20 words that the grandchildren of Grandpa’s customers in Village Way would believe, approve and remember.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I read it this morning. It was an excellent piece - deeply felt and very well written. He's an interesting fellow. Cameron should pay heed.

Anonymous said...

I believe that David Cameron made his biggest mistake of his life on 23rd June when he made the statement that he believed Blair was right to go to war in Iraq. Just one week before a crucial by-election he manages to alienate the greater majority of the electorate who firmly believe that the war was a wrong decision. Matthew Parris puts forward some very good advice, but a true artist always plays the audience, not the song!

Anonymous said...

The only thing, Vienna Woods, is that opinion polls indicate that most Brits support our role in the war in Iraq. It is the noisy, whiny, lofty, hate-ridden lefties who make it appear unpopular.

Anonymous said...

A YouGov poll, published in the Daily Telegraph Monday 3rd April, found that 57 per cent of Britons now think military action against Iraq was wrong, compared to just 33 per cent who still support it...and thereby hangs the problem! It's not a case of Tory thinking, but keeping up to date with public opinion. This is exactly why Blair is in such (how can I put it?) deep shit. He has ignored crime and immigration and how the general public view it. Instead he wasted years trying to impose his mamby pamby liberal ideas instead of listening for a change! How often have we heard him say, "We are listening". The only time we hear this is when he realises the trouble he's in....too late!

Praguetory said...

I dont think that reconfirming the standard Con stance re war made a blind bit of difference re voting intentions in B and C and Iraq isnt significant in any seats without Muslim populations. Why do you think this is still important to peoples voting intentions.

Blair was right to go to war in Iraq. What Cameron should have criticised is that Blair didnt have the guts to explain truthfully his reasons for war... this point may have been slightly lost on Joe Public, but it would all be part of criticising the cynical spin coarsing through the veins of New Labour... I think that Cameron has unfortunately taken a strategic decision not to criticise Blair in explicit terms.

Anonymous said...

You reall don't get it, do you? Matthew Paris makes it quite clear when he said, “the next Tory Government will . . .” and consider how to complete it with (say) 20 words that the grandchildren of Grandpa’s customers in Village Way would believe, approve and remember.

The grandchildren of Grandpa's customers are not necessarily Tories you know, but are fed the daily tripe from the Sun, Mirror and heaven knows what else and pick up mainly the negatives. If David Cameron keeps making statements supporting what Labour are doing, especially Blair, then very soon minds will be made up that Conservatives really are as useless as Labour.....and we know that's not true.....don't we?