These are tough times for the Tory party. The Conservatives are struggling to get ‘cut-through’ in the national media and in the public debate. Because of the party’s lowly poll ratings, such coverage as there is tends to focus on whether the Tories are minded to embark upon yet another leadership election. Some ask whether the party can survive at all.
Good news for Kemi Badenoch has been thin on the ground.
But she can draw some real comfort this weekend from a survey conducted by my grassroots organisation, Popular Conservatism.
We asked hundreds of rank-and-file Tories how the party should seek to get back on its feet and how it should rebuild.
Tory supporters are not overwhelmed with unalloyed hope and optimism – they would be delusional if they were.
A vast majority thought last month’s local election results were as bad as to be expected, or even worse.
A good chunk of those surveyed are tempted by Reform and think Nigel Farage will be the next prime minister.
On Kemi herself, 60 per cent think she is doing something from a reasonable to an excellent job in what have obviously been difficult circumstances.
Good news for Kemi Badenoch (pictured) has been thin on the ground in recent times
But she can draw some real comfort this weekend from a survey conducted by grassroots organisation Popular Conservatism, writes Mark Littlewood (pictured)
Tory members don’t seem to think that Kemi is facing the wrong way, they just want her to run, rather than walk, in the direction she has set
On policy and strategy, the messages they sent back are pretty clear.
They expect a full overhaul of Tory party headquarters and more powers given over to the membership – rather than central office parachuting favoured sons and daughters into desirable seats.
But it’s on policy where Kemi should take the most heart. She has already pivoted away from the 2050 carbon Net Zero commitment and 93 per cent agree with her.
She has now opened an internal commission into whether the UK should withdraw from the ECHR – 91 per cent think we should.
There is also overwhelming support for slashing back quangos (95 per cent) and dramatically reducing the size of the Civil Service (93 per cent).
Scrapping the Supreme Court (78 per cent), abolishing the Equality Act (76 per cent) and curtailing the independence of the Bank of England (79 per cent) also curry significant favour.
Taken together, these measures could add up to the sort of full-blooded agenda that Tory members think could revive the party’s fortunes.
And they want it rolled out fast, with 86 per cent demanding that policy positions be adopted more rapidly than has been the case thus far.
Tory members don’t seem to think that Kemi is facing the wrong way, they just want her to run, rather than walk, in the direction she has set.
