Image via Wikipedia
I have received a media release from Conservative Central Office confirming that the Party will be organising in Northern Ireland from here on as the Conservative Party (no reference to “Unionist”). The release makes clear that the Party will be contesting local government elections in May.
However the release makes no reference to the Assembly elections.
I’ll be commenting in more detail on this announcement later. (In fact, no need, just read my comments on this post).
The full text of the release from CCHQ reads as follows:
The Conservative Party in Northern Ireland has committed itself to an ongoing programme of campaigning and development and will shortly move into a new campaign headquarters in Bangor, Co. Down. A full time member of staff will be based at the headquarters and one of the Party’s most senior campaign directors has been appointed to liaise with the Party in Northern Ireland.
The Party is committed to the development of progressive centre right politics which offer the electorate of Northern Ireland the opportunity to cast their votes for and participate directly with the national Government of the United Kingdom. The Party will continue to review how Conservatives in Northern Ireland can play a full part in the Conservative Party as in every other part of the United Kingdom and senior Conservatives in Northern Ireland will work with the Board of the Party to develop that relationship.
Central to that development will be the Party’s desire to see Conservative Associations formed in every Northern Ireland constituency and an active programme of membership recruitment at a local level.
Conservative Party co-chairman Baroness Warsi said: “The Conservative Party in Northern Ireland has the unequivocal support of the Party nationally. Politics in Northern Ireland continues to evolve and we are determined to be at the heart of that evolution. Our approach will be one of active engagement – starting with the fielding of candidates in the Local Council elections in May.”
ENDS
This has been as a result of intensive lobbying by the NI Conservatives Jeff.
If Mr Elliot thinks he can demand the closing down of the NI Conservatives he can now think again.
Along with this statement CCHQ is making a significant financial investment in NI.
We need to start building from council level up. And this is a very good day for us and a good start.
Given that this wonderful announcement was in the pipeline, its a shame Owen Paterson never responded to our email. We feared the worst.
I take it you will rejoin then? Even more reasons to kick the Tories out at the next general election!
Damien, no I won’t be re-joining them.
I notice on another blog Jeff you seem to be suggesting the Executive was somehow duped.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
It’s quite one thing to be an armchair conservative and say yes candidates should be standing, its very much another when you have 3 months left to organise a campaign and find candidates of sufficient calibre and then argue a case for CCHQ to finance it when last time round we got less than 1% of the vote from similar candidates we would be presenting now.
I have no doubt that had these factors been different CCHQ would have said go ahead and we will finance it. You have to present a proper business plan to achieve the kind of finances that are necessary.
Like every organisation CCHQ run a tight budget and it was felt that monies would be better focussed on the long term and building associations and members.
We have tried the short-cut route through UCUNF and look where that got us.
It’s back to the drawing board and that may involve getting involved in discussing street collection or planning appeals, but that’s how the Green Party got into the Assembly and we are no different.
Richard, not contesting the Assembly elections – even with just one candidate – sends out all the wrong signals and has David Trimble stamped all over it. I take your point re. finances but the local Executive is stupefyingly poor at thinking strategically. We had an organisation of sorts prior to UCUNF – a bizarre CCHQ Heath Robinson construct. The local Exec allowed itself to be walked over before – and appears to have done so again. Not contesting the Assembly elections is bizarre. It’s for this reason I can’t get excited about this new arrangement. We owe no favours to CCHQ – and it has provided none to us.
Politics is the art of the possible jeff.
I think it’s unfair to say the executive were not strategic enough or were walked over when you consider my previous points. No one goes into a battle without money or soldiers! The executive were offered a future investment instead and I consider that to have a stronger foundation for the future.
Conservatives are going nowhere here without stronger associations, more members , and proper capable candidates. Putting people up just for the sake of it and returning less than 1% hasn’t got us anywhere in the past. This offer from CCHQ lays down an opportunity for more than that.
CCHQ presenting opportunities. That’s novel. They systematically ignored those of us who argued against the UUP “pact”. They oversaw Unionist unity talks with the DUP. They agreed to a sectarian carve-up in Fermanagh South Tyrone – making liars of themselves, in terms of contesting every UK constituency. They allowed the so-called “joint committee” to select, almost exclusively, UUP dead-wood for the Westminster elections, they ignored UUP sectarianism (including “Unionist Unity” talks with the Orange Order)…etc., etc. Hence you will understand my reservation of enthusiasm.
I totally agree Jeff. But maybe CCHQ needed to get their fingers burnt, they are in London after all. Some of them know very little about the Orange Order or sectarianism here.
I totally understand your reservations and to be totally frank my trust levels are low.
But if you are offered 2 choses. One which is on principle correct but offers nothing more than the principle of standing or you are offered something which for the first time is an investment in the future (and is not tied into a pact with the UUP) which do you chose? You can’t have both. If you do want both you have to finance yourself.
We chose not to stand, and as an area officer I stand by that decision to be the right one. I’d much rather see an investment in something more secure.
I take your point about the message it sends out, its not ideal, but then again do we want another thrashing at the polls? Campaigning this late has produced that before.
My instinct is that Jeff’s interpretation is, and substantially so, the correct one.
I think the local Conservatives have been lumbered with a very bad deal indeed.
Regards,
Alex.
Jeff & Alex, you’ve both been involved in NI poltics for a tad longer than I. My cup is always half full, and I can only see the opportunities for NI Tories, should they choose to seize them, and have the vision to grab them.The struggle for recognition & support from CCHQ has been successfully won, so the local Associations need to concentrate on the basic functions of a local Association: money, members % elections. Several new Associations were set up last year, and they are fully functioning.
Stepping out of the Assembly elections is not the bad deal you paint it as – if the UUP are heading towards a car crash set of results, they’re doing it alone, on their bankroll, and they won’t be able to point a wizened finger at the local Tories & suggest it was all our fault. Bring it on.
Joanne, we’re not at one on this. The point I have made is that the local Exec threw all its toys out of the pram because CCHQ refused to contest the Assembly elections. The Area Chairman resigned over the issue. Now he has un-resigned when nothing has changed. The excuse is that because of the delay it would be impossible to get ready. But that’s nonsense – as has been pointed out by Seymour Major over on his blog. Even a single candidate put forward for the Assembly elections would make clear that the Conservatives are serious and intend to define themselves as a brand distinct from sectarian “Unionism” and “Nationalism”. There is no point to democratic politics if elections aren’t contested. Constant preparation for success is not the point – it’s about democracy, plain and simple. If the brand is dodgy, no-one will vote for it. That’s politics. But the end game in the process is about de-toxifying our politics. We’re either in that game or we aren’t.
Yes Jeff but you are missing the point also with respect.
When you are presented with an investment which is based on principle alone and another which has a greater chance of reaping rewards, which do you chose? CCHQ simply will not finance both. Only a certain amount will be allocated to NI.
The boat had sailed on the prospect of good candidates for the Assembly. They all went elsewhere and the opportunity was lost.
Those that had the remotest chance of getting elected e.g Parsley, got fed up waiting.
So its a stark choice. Waste or build.
CCHQ have made the decision that if we are to get anywhere we have to invest in building associations and I mean proper active ones campaigning on local issues. Getting councillors elected on the strength of that. Having a press officer dealing daily with issues. All these things that WORK in England and get results.
I used the example of the Green Party in Bangor. They didn’t suddenly parachute into Stormont. They worked hard on the ground on the day to day issues like waste removal and road gritting.
Being an armchair Conservative isn’t going to get results, its back to basics and building from the ground up.
Quite frankly I believe the direction CCHQ is taking is the correct one, and they are offering their full backing to achieve it.
I believe a badly damaged UUP after the May elections will also help our cause with CCHQ. The UUP won’t be able to blame UCUNF this time.
I’m sure you could find one or two candidates who would self-finance to contest the Assembly elections. But, by the sound of things, CCHQ won’t allow you to do that – such is their love of the barmy UUP.
Point taken Jeff but trust me things are changing.
Its not least because of the direction the UUP has taken since the Waterfront meeting.
From the most unusual of sources in the Party people are seeing the UUP as a lame duck set upon self destruction and meltdown.
We fully intend to capitalise upon that.
Elliot’s demand for us to be closed down has been given a strong rebuff in this statement and relations with the UUP are only set to get worse, especially after May.
Jeff, I’ve always believed that a hardworking, focused candidate with a minimum of electoral sense can work a seat hard. The run-up to a by-election at all levels tends to be around 3 weeks, with a generally unknown candidate. The toys were taken by CCHQ in early December; we only have resolved this matter now. I have no knowledge how/by who the Assembly decision was taken, but the days of lame duck, talking shop, supper club Conservative politics have to stop now. To fail at Assembly level would lead to an accusation from the UUP – ‘look, we lost seats because you stood’. I think there is far greater value in letting them get on with it, while we fix the roof.
Very well said Joanne. Excellent points
Of course, the irrepressively fair NI elector doesn’t get a by-election in which to kick out political groups/independents they are no longer happy with, they just get more of the same. Madness!!
I wouldn’t say ‘by-elections have short run-ups and it can be done’. Unless of course I’d done it myself as a totally unknown candidate.
Might have been the unfeasibly short skirt, tho’!!
Late Spring campaign…maybe short skirts might be the key…
Words fail me! The mind boggles…now which ward shall I go for? April has some nice days, after all. Nice weather for that Wedding could see me home!
Enough! Back to reasoned debate!
Agree with Jeff P & Alex K. But its not only Conservatives in NI who have been lumbered with a bad deal by their mother party. Tom Elliott and his spokesperson Mike Nesbitt has also been deceived into OPENLY declare to the media, the UUP will take the Tory whip at both Westminster and the European parliament. But when it comes to David Cameron and his secretary of state Owen Paterson OPENLY declare to the media the Conservative party will support the UUP in NI you can forget it.
Jeff,
I see the UUP Treasurer is getting his wings in a flap on Seymour Majors blog. As a party officer at the time can you confirm that the UUP reneged over a financial deal before the Euro election and Conservative funds paid for the campaign?
The only person who could answer definitively would be Roger Lomas who was the Conservative Area treasurer at the time. When Lomas resigned he called me to say he was disgusted with the way the UUP had behaved – so I suspect it didn’t keep its side of the bargain.
Ok.im surprised all the officers didn’t know. Cosgrove is threatening legal action against Seymour
They may have but I was fired by CCHQ after just 2 or 3 meetings of the joint committee and well before the GE campaign. But I know that the UUP was exhibiting signs of being in dire financial circumstances. I don’t think Seymour, as a solicitor, will be too worried by Cosgrove’s threats. I look forward to the UUP being subpoenaed.
Weren’t you involved around the Euro election period though? It’s being said it was then
Nope – I was fired a day or two after the Euro campaign was launched. I knew the writing was on the wall when Fred Cobain started throwing bits of paper at me at the press launch for Nicholson’s campaign. Creepy people UUPers. But also, mostly, quite ill-educated and stupid. And Cosgrove’s grammar is appalling.