We all love a good loser, but ….

Posted by on Jun 21, 2010 in 2010 general election, updates | 2 comments The post-election parties are still in full swing. While it’s great to celebrate a victory, our unsuccessful parliamentary candidates are also showing their appreciation to those who supported them in the gruelling run-up to May’s general election. Last night I joined fellow Tories to share a Pimm’s with Cambridge’s Conservative candidate Nick Hillman who had an astounding...
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Quote of the day from David Blunkett

Posted by on May 11, 2010 in 2010 general election | 9 comments David Blunkett tells the BBC: Any deal with Labour would be “a coalition of the defeated“.
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A small increase of women MPs

Posted by on May 8, 2010 in 2010 general election, Women MPs | 2 comments  Because I believe you are all longing to know how many women were elected into Parliament, this is the breakdown, courtesy of the Centre for Women and Democracy. Don’t hold your breath, it’s not earth shattering: a total of 142 women were elected (22%), a small increase of the 126 women in situ before the election (19.5%) – a net gain of just 16, or 2.5%. The biggest...
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Our outstanding Cambridge success

Posted by on May 7, 2010 in 2010 general election | 7 comments Nick Hillman can congratulate himself on his outstanding success last night. He was only selected as the Cambridge Conservative parliamentary candidate just over four months ago, a seat where we came a poor third in the 2005 general election after Lib Dems sensationally snatched it from Labour. The result then was 19,152 (44%) Lib Dems; 14,813 (34%) Lab; and 7,193 (16.5%) Cons. This is a seat...
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Terrific success for Julian Sturdy MP, and other results

Posted by on May 7, 2010 in 2010 general election | 14 comments Wow, what a night, though we all knew it was going to be sensational for many different reasons, with Lembit Opik and Jacqui Smith’s humiliating defeats among some of the shock results. I was naturally thrilled that we won in York Outer where a very close campaign was fought between Conservative candidate Julian Sturdy and his Lid Dem rival Madeleine Kirk, who was tipped to win. It was...
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Tremendous feeling of optimism with Cambridge voters

Posted by on May 6, 2010 in 2010 general election | 5 comments I’ve been telling in Cambridge for Conservatives and can report that there has been a huge turnout of voters, particularly first-time voters which you would expect in a university city. I know our candidate Nick Hillman has a lot of support here, and that his hard work will hopefully pay off today. Election staff said it was the  highest turnout in recent memory, with queues outside...
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My role as an election teller and counting agent

Posted by on May 6, 2010 in 2010 general election | 3 comments Iain Dale has flagged up two quotes today from voters who are supporting Conservatives for the first time. I am pleased to say I have met others who feel the same way, and interviewed a couple on this video for Rob Halfon, who is standing in Harlow. I stumbled across similar sentiments on the Daily Mirror website this morning from a reader commenting on an article naturally intended to humiliate...
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Asian voters must vote Conservative, a message straight from the heart

Posted by on May 5, 2010 in 2010 general election | 13 comments A guest post by Muheed Jeeran urging Asian voters to vote Conservative: Asian community voters should consider to changing their tradition of voting this time for a party which has the real concern to help the British public and poorest in the world. I am an active Tory comrade and it is time for me to advise my fellow Sri Lankans and Asians living in UK to consider for Tories as your next ruling...
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Gordon slammed for being the “worst Prime Minister” our country has ever had

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in 2010 general election | 7 comments I was running on the treadmill at my gym early this morning listening to Sky News when the headlines flashed up about Gordon Brown being called the worst Prime Minister this country has ever had. You would expect those words to have come straight from the mouth of Conservatives, Lib Dems, or any other opponent. But they were uttered by North West Norfolk Labour candidate Manish Sood who knows...
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Cambridge candidates speak out on tuition fees

Posted by on May 4, 2010 in 2010 general election | 2 comments This is a particularly important topic for Cambridge with its world famous university. The four parliamentary candidates on the panel, Daniel Zeichner for Labour, Julian Huppert for Lib Dems, Nick Hillman for Conservatives, and Tony Juniper, for the Green Party. were asked their views about the future of tuition fees, and their replies can be heard on this video. Of course, I wish like Lib Dems...
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Nick Hillman and Cambridge’s election countdown

Posted by on May 3, 2010 in 2010 general election | 3 comments I went to a Cambridge hustings last night and the city’s election is still very much a four-man race. I was there supporting Nick Hillman, our Conservative parliamentary candidate, and he appeared to go down really well with the audience who warmed to his wit, intelligence, spontaneity, sharpness and humour. He had several cheers during the evening and, and along with Tony Juniper, stood...
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The Times backs the Tories!!

Posted by on May 1, 2010 in 2010 general election | 8 comments The Times refused to back the Tories at the Conservative Party Conference last autumn. You can see Times Editor James Harding state on this video that none of the major parties had so far earned their influential endorsement. He said: “We will make a decision on endorsing a party when it is clear they have earned it.” Today that endorsement has been made. Thank you James...
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Jim Paice faces unexpected battle to retain his seat

Posted by on Apr 29, 2010 in 2010 general election | 2 comments The worrying backlash from John Cowan being dropped by Labour in South East Cambridgeshire is the threat this unexpectedly poses for Jim Paice, our wonderful Shadow Agriculture and Rural Affairs Secretary. What he doesn’t know about this subject isn’t worth knowing. He lives and breathes farming and the countryside, it’s in his blood. I was stunned to read in the Cambridge News...
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Introducing our two Luton Conservative candidates

Posted by on Apr 29, 2010 in 2010 general election | 1 comment There’s only one week left to E-Day, and our two Conservative candidates in Luton, Nigel Huddleston standing in Luton South, and Jeremy Brier, for Luton North, discuss their campaigns in the run up to 6th May. Nigel also discusses the Esther-factor, and the response she is getting from voters. Here is a link to a second video I made showing support for these two great guys from local...
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When Gordon met Gillian

Posted by on Apr 29, 2010 in 2010 general election | 5 comments They were softly spoken words which dealt the killer blow for a flagging Prime Minister now publicly shamed for his lack of sincerity, no matter how grovelling his humble apology to grandmother Gillian Duffy. Although much publicity has been given to the quizzing she gave him on the national debt and immigration, she raised two other key issues which very much worry the electorate – the...
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Whatever the result, we will not get the change we really need in parliament – more women MPs

Posted by on Apr 26, 2010 in 2010 general election, Women MPs | 9 comments Whatever the outcome of the general election, we will not see the change we really need in parliament – many more women MPs to reflect our true society. Data shows that although the three main political parties are fielding a record number of women candidates for the 2010 general election, the results are unlikely to result in a dramatic increase of women MPs, perhaps around 5% or even...
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Labour’s lurid PPC John Cowan sacked?

Posted by on Apr 25, 2010 in 2010 general election | 4 comments It would appear that Labour’s South East Cambridgeshire parliamentary candidate John Cowan (pic right) has been sacked for sending lurid emails in his previous life as a Lib Dem supporter (oh, he considered becoming Tory too!) This is my constituency, so I naturally have a special interest in it. I highlighted his dubious background earlier this week, and the local Labour Party then said it...
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Nick Hillman winning Cambridge’s student vote

Posted by on Apr 24, 2010 in 2010 general election | 6 comments Nick Hillman is outstandingly impressive as Cambridge’s Conservative parliamentary candidate. Regardless of the fact that Tories came third here in the last general election – and a very poor third winning only 7,193 votes compared to 19,152 for Lib Dems – he has fought a determined campaign to win Cambridge back. Cambridge is not a marginal seat and, as such, gets no support...
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Andrew Lansley outlines Conservative plans to care for the elderly

Posted by on Apr 23, 2010 in 2010 general election | 0 comments Andrew Lansley, Shadow Health Secretary, outlines Conservative plans to support the elderly, including the £8,000 insurance proposal to pay for long-term care, and supporting them to be independent at home. The video was recorded during Andrew’s visit to Yorkshire this week to support parliamentary candidates Julian Sturdy and Nigel...
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Happy birthday to the Bard, and the downgrading of Shakespeare in schools

Posted by on Apr 23, 2010 in 2010 general election, Personal | 4 comments I hero worship William Shakespeare for his wit and inspirational writing, for his use of language and his exceptional perception on life and events; his grasp of love, treachery, history, comedy and pathos.  A testament to his brilliance is popularity of his plays in theatres today, more than 400 years after he penned them. As I prefer to celebrate birthdays rather than anniversaries of...
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Labour candidate sent “seedy” emails as Lib Dem

Posted by on Apr 22, 2010 in 2010 general election | 6 comments Labour’s parliamentary candidate John Cowan, a former glamour model manager, is named and shamed for being expelled from the Lib Dems for sending “sexual” emails to female political figures. Cowan is challenging Shadow Agriculture Secretary Jim Paice in South East Cambridgeshire; it is my constituency, in fact Jim knocked on my door this morning while out canvassing! The...
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An evening of theatre and politics

Posted by on Apr 22, 2010 in 2010 general election, Personal | 0 comments I’m afraid I am missing the second of the leaders’ election debates this evening due to an invitation to see Alan Bennett’s latest masterpiece, The Habit of Art, at a special linked screening at the Arts Picturehouse in Cambridge. Understandably, it’s a sell-out. I’ll catch up with Brown/Cameron/Clegg on Newsnight later in the evening. I’m desperate to see how...
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The Shadow Health Secretary’s visit, voters’ thoughts and the vanishing election posters!

Posted by on Apr 20, 2010 in 2010 general election | 6 comments I was supporting Julian Sturdy as a friend today, knowing his sincerity in genuinely wanting to help chronic back pain sufferers who have been denied routine funding of NHS spinal injections which make a huge difference to the quality of their daily lives, but are no longer readily accessible from their health authority. Both Julian, our Conservative parliamentary candidate in York Outer, and...
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Voting is a “Christian duty”, states Archbishop of York

Posted by on Apr 20, 2010 in 2010 general election | 5 comments The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, has the best ecclesiastical website I have seen to date, packed with interesting personal information about his life and regular updates about his official holy duties which take him all over the world. He is also very keen on the social media, and in this video he urges Christians to use their vote on 6th May, describing it as “a Christian...
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Peter Oborne: “This is the most sexist general election since the 1950s”

Posted by on Apr 19, 2010 in 2010 general election | 6 comments Respected political writer Peter Oborne asks the same question I did recently, and echoes the same thoughts: Whatever happened to female politicians in this election? Writing in The Mail, he describes this as “the most sexist general election since the 1950s”. This is what he wrote: Never in British political history have leaders’ wives played the dominant role they now enjoy....
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