CCHQ needs its mojo back
4 min read
The work of introspection and self-improvement is, like all worthwhile acts of creation, laborious and hard.
The work of criticism of the outside world, by contrast, is always more exhilarating. As Leo Tolstoy once wrote, “Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” But the British voters sent a clear message to the Conservatives that they were fed up with our constant infighting and navel gazing. Talk of ‘the five families’ and other fatuous rot brought to mind smoke filled rooms in a film noir more than a responsible party of government.
So it is that, without any enthusiasm for them at all, the public turned to Labour. But to earn the right to fix the inevitable mess they will create, the Conservatives need to set our own lands in order. Once a new leader has been appointed, one of their most important tasks will be the reconstruction of the party, and that starts with CCHQ.
I felt more like management consultant than politician
The losing party will always suffer after a general election, and after 14 years of government, the Conservative Party was always going to require a shake-up. You can always tell where an organisation is when you walk in through the front doors. The Conservative campaign headquarters was in clear need of reform when I did just that on becoming party chairman at the start of Rishi Sunak’s period as leader of the party.
My team set about interviewing the staff, who were to a person dedicated, hard-working and committed to the cause. They were the first to admit that all was not as it could have been. I was quickly presented with a deck of quick operational wins, which we set about implementing, that covered everything from literally letting sunlight into the building to reorganising the structure of the team and making key hires. I felt more like management consultant than politician.
The new leader will have more freedom to make lasting changes now that we are in opposition, as they will not have to be fixing the plan while it is in the air. My advice to whoever that person is would be to dust down those plans we had laid out, but I will share a few key areas of focus here.
First, membership. In the 1950s, the Conservative Party had millions of members and was often the heart of the social life in towns up and down our nation. You might meet your business partner, or better yet, your future spouse. Today, our party is much smaller, and skews much older, despite the enthusiasm for politics in the young. The Adam Smith Institute’s Next Generation Centre and groups like the Next Gen Tories need to play a big role in expanding this.
Second, data. Data and evidence have always been my allies inside both business and politics. At YouGov, it was the lifeblood of the whole company. In Whitehall, it was much more alien to be really data-led, despite its potency for winning people around to your arguments. This was true in vaccines and education, and it will be true for winning the next election. We need to invest in it like never before.
Third, morale and mission. I stood in 1997. I know how much being walloped by a defeat stings. CCHQ needs to get some mojo back. This will start by having the party’s big beasts in the office more, reminding the party faithful, and its staff in particular, what we believe in.
Mrs Thatcher once threw down Friedrich Hayek’s The Constitution of Liberty onto a table in CCHQ’s predecessor organisation and said: “This is what we believe”. Forty years later, we installed bookshelves in CCHQ and got think tanks to donate hundreds of books. Which book will be thrown down next?
The solution could well be an elected party chairman, chosen by the members. For all the problems it might bring, it would give people more of a reason to join the party and ensure MPs are listening to the rank and file.
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