Tory review 'says party needs youth wing' to reach out to young voters
1 min read
A Conservative party review will call for the re-creation of a youth wing to win back young voters from Labour, a new report has said.
The review, which was conducted by former party chairman Sir Eric Pickles and presented to backbenchers this week, is part of the Tory response to the the shock June election result.
Theresa May managed to lose her Commons majority at the snap vote after the party made a net loss of 12 seats.
Labour meanwhile found overwhelming support among young people with its online campaigning techniques and pledges such as the scrapping of tuition fees.
According to the Guardian, Sir Eric said a new youth movement would encourage young people to campaign and canvass for the party, reversing its decline amongst the demographic.
Proposals to set up bursaries and training colleges for activists were also included in the review.
Conservative Future, once the party’s youth organisation, was shut down in 2015 after claims of bullying and harassment within the movement, as well as the tragic suicide of activist Elliott Johnson.
In August 2017, Tory campaigners established Activate, a youth organisation imitating the Corbyn-supporting campaign group Momentum.
But the group came under fire after people linked to Activate were found to have been joking about “gassing chavs” on a WhatsApp group.
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