What localism can do
Last week I promised a lovely lady on Twitter called Sue (@personatia) that I would write a blog on why localism is important, and why it has so much potential. I’m not going to go too deeply into any...
View ArticleWhy we should – must – keep talking about the Big Society
People laugh at David Cameron for his focus on the Big Society. They think he’s deluded to think that we can consciously make our surroundings better by getting involved. But that is what all politics...
View ArticleIs Miliband’s “British Promise” one to watch?
Ed Miliband spoke at the weekend to the Progress conference. It hardly won critical acclaim: a New Statesman blog called it the ‘worst speech he has ever delivered’ and John Rentoul wasn’t impressed by...
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Obama searches for apostrophe in Ireland, ideas in UK
President Obama’s visit to the UK this week was a hugely significant event. Obama is a hugely popular figure in Britain and gained a very warm reception from public and politicians alike. Barack Obama...
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Are czars the answer?
I am quite a fan of Martin Lewis. I think he helps consumers stand up to big financial institutions, and arms them with clear information about both their rights and their responsibilities. I am not,...
View ArticleIncreasing relative economic equality: a recipe for Conservative success
Imagine a man baking a pie in the kitchen, let’s call him George. He has already made one earlier, and this is just cooling down, ready to be eaten. The one he has just made is bigger, but is still...
View ArticleStop dancing to Ukip’s tune, Mr Cameron
In marketing, one of the keys to success is brand ‘differentiation’. The same applies to political parties. I see no value in the Conservative Party becoming Ukip-lite. Lurching to the right will...
View ArticleThat big ‘Europe’ speech…
Did you miss the big speech on Europe? Fresh from pushing his followers towards a more liberal line on gay rights, it was David Cam – actually it was Pope Francis who made the most telling intervention...
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Futurists, sunshine and making the choice to have control of your sunny future
Via @EdConwaySky Ed Conway at Sky has just tweeted this graphic showing just how unusual it is for a pre-election Budget not to be a giveaway one. People largely expected a big rabbit to be plucked...
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(Only) Three Reasons to Vote Conservative
The polls say the election’s outcome is up in the air, but one thing is clear – the Tories are close to polling better than the 36.1% share of the vote won in 2010. No mean feat given the perils and...
View ArticleRhetoric, communication – and the gulf between the two
You have to feel for the non-Westminster Village public at the moment. In the run-up to the AV referendum, we have seen a great deal of the very worst kind of political campaigning on both sides of the...
View ArticleWhat lessons can be taken from the AV campaigns?
On Friday, Mark Thompson wrote that, “The AV campaign was a disgrace from both sides”. I tweeted that I thought he had drawn some wrong conclusions but that he made sensible points, and promised that...
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