28th May 2019
All
candidates for Leadership of
The
Conservative Party
Dear Candidate,
Re: Party
Reform
It has been
speculated in the media that you are considering running for leadership of the
Conservative Party (you might have announced already whilst this letter is on
its way to you, in which case I apologise).
As you will be
aware we are campaigning for greater democracy within the Conservative Party
and we have a 5 point agenda, which I have attached.
You will know how
divided the Party is at the moment and how we urgently need to repair the
damage that has been done and we believe that ours is part of a plan that can
start to bring the Party back together.
We would like you
to consider adopting these points as part of your leadership bid.
We will at the
same time as writing this letter publish it on our web site and in two weeks
time we will announce those candidates that have indicated that they are
willing to adopt them and we will advise the membership of the Conservative
Party that they should consider voting for the candidates that adopt the change
that is desperately needed for the Party.
Please if you can
consider this and let me know your response as soon as possible. We will also publish all responses.
Good luck with your
candidacy and for the Party’s sake I hope that the best one wins.
With best wishes
John E. Strafford
Conservative
Party Reform
Current
Position
1)
Party Membership is 125-160,000. Approx. 10-15% are Activists. To run a National Ground campaign in a
General Election you need approx. 500,000 members or 50,000 Activists.
2)
The last General Election at which we
had 500,000 members was in 1992. Since
then we have had 20 Party Chairmen who have presided over a declining
membership and done nothing about it.
The last National membership campaign was in 1988.
3)
Per the Feldman Review (2016), 290
Constituency Associations have fewer than 100 members. Only 50 associations have more than 500
members.
4)
Research has shown that people join
political parties for social reasons, and in order to participate in decision
making, either by voting on policy or voting for those that make policy.
5)
There is a huge gap between the views of
the Parliamentary Party and the Voluntary Party, e.g. 60% of Tory MPs were in
favour of remaining in the European Union, whereas 70% of members wished to
leave the European Union.
Objectives
1) To
increase Party membership to a minimum of 500,000.
2) To
eliminate the gap between the Parliamentary Party and the voluntary party on
policy issues by encouraging debate at the Party Conference/Spring Forum.
3) To
reverse the centralisation of the Party organisation by giving power back to
the members on candidate selection.
4) To
bring accountability into how the Party is organised by having elected
officials accountable to the membership.
5) To
enable the Constitution of the Party to be changed without going through a
lengthy process in what is now a rapidly changing world.
Five
Essential Reforms
1)
The National Convention should be
replaced by an Annual General Meeting to which all Party members are invited.
2)
The Chairman of the Party Board, Deputy
Chairman, Treasurer, Chairman of the Candidates Committee and Chairman of the
Policy Forum should be elected by and accountable to Party members and present
Annual reports to the Annual General Meeting.
3)
Constituency Associations should have
the right to determine who their Parliamentary Candidate should be with due
process and minimum interference by CCHQ, with safeguards for Constituencies
where the membership is below a certain level.
4)
Motions for debate should be re-instated
at the Party Conference and/or at the Spring Forum.
5)
The Party Constitution should be capable
of being changed at a General Meeting of the Party by Party members on the
basis of One Member One Vote with a 60% majority. The present minor changes to
the Constitution have been under discussion for four years and nothing has
happened.
Administration
1)
Party members have virtually no rights
or means of progressing these essential changes. It is therefore critical for the
Parliamentary Party to get involved. A group of Conservative MPs together with
a group of volunteers should meet and agree the best way to pursue these
reforms.
2)
There is now a Leadership election and
all the candidates for Leader will be asked to publicly endorse these
proposals.
3)
The Executive of the 1922 Committee will
be asked for their support.
Communication
1) By
use of the internet communication can be speeded up.
2) Voting
on line can be used for positions and for involvement of the membership in
proposed policies.
3) Social
media can be used for instant communication.
Without radical reform
the party will cease to exist!
