Letter to the Conservative Party Chairmen

 The following was sent on 12th March 2025 and was acknowledged.   If I get a response I will let you know.

 For Attention Conservative Party Chairmen, Nigel Huddleston, Lord Johnson of Lainston, Chairman of the National Convention, Julian Ellacott 

                                                                                                                              

Dear Sirs,

In an article published by Conservativehome yesterday the Leader of the Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, asked for comments regarding the reform of the Conservative Party.   I attach herewith my paper on reform.   I would welcome your response and comments.

Yours sincerely

John E. Strafford

Chairman

Campaign for Conservative Democracy

Seven Steps to create a democratic Conservative Party, fit for the 21^st Century

Introduction

1)     Party Membership is 131,680 as per the Leadership election of November 2024.   Approx. 10-15% are activists, i.e., approx. 20,000.   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.   In the last 25 years we have had 25 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 had fewer than 100 members.   Only 50 associations have more than 500 members.   These figures will now be considerably smaller!

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  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.

6)     Many members feel that as they elect the Leader they should be the people who decide whether to get rid of the Leader, not the MPs.

7)     Party members feel that a large part of the parliamentary party no longer support the traditional Conservative Party values of small state, low taxation, strong defence, strong law and order, individual freedom and liberty.

8)     Since the Party Constitution was created in 1998 it has grown with more and more centralisation and power grabs by vested interests, both at National Level and at local level.   CCHQ, the Parliamentary Party and Constituency Chairman have taken more power.   An indication of this is that the last amendments to the Constitution in 2021 were passed by the National Convention (which consists primarily of Constituency Chairmen) with 94-98% agreement, a Stalinist result but indicative.

9)     The Constitution of the National Union of Conservative Associations pre 1998 was 29 pages in length.   The Party Constitution when introduced in 1998 was 43 pages in length.   Today it is 58 pages in length an increase of 35%, but this only tells part of the story for within the Constitution are sub committees which meet in secret and change the rules whenever they so wish which members have no knowledge about either before they are implemented or after implementation but with which they have to comply.   Each year the Committee on Candidates which consists of appointed people unaccountable to the members, alter the rules by which Parliamentary Candidates and local Government candidates are selected.   The latest rules on the Selection of Candidates are 55 pages in length.   Members have had no say in these rules, but have to comply with them.   The 1922 Committee rules for the election of the Leader are five pages in length. They are changed without any reference to the members.   For example in 2016 only a Proposer and Seconder were required for an MP to put his name forward as a candidate. In 2019 this changed to eight Nominations required.   In 2022 20 nominations were required. In late 2022 100 nominations required.

It cannot be right that the Constitution of the Conservative Party can be changed by secret sub committees of the Party Board and the members of the Party have no say in the changes made.

Finally, Article 17 of the Constitution gives the power to the Party Board “to do anything which in its opinion relates to the management and administration of the Party”  This makes the rest of the Constitution irrelevant.   This cannot be right and must be changed.   The Board used this clause to justify imposing parliamentary candidates on constituencies.

 The Seven Steps to Reform

1)     The Chairman of the Party Board, Two Deputy Chairmen, Treasurer, Chairman of the Candidates Committee and Chairman of the Policy Forum to be officers of the Party on the Party Board, elected by and accountable to Party Members, and to present Annual Reports to an Annual General Meeting to which all Party members are invited.

 The Accounts of the Party to be adopted at the Annual General Meeting.

 The clause in the Party Constitution (Article 17) which gives power to the    Party Board “to do anything which in its opinion relates to the management and administration of the Party” to be deleted. The Party Board to have a majority of voluntary Party members.

 This is to ensure that those in control of the Party’s organisation are accountable to the Members of the Party.   The Party Board to have a majority of Members elected by Party Members.   Article 17 of the Constitution as it stands makes the rest of the Constitution irrelevant.   In an emergency the Board may respond but any action taken should be ratified by the Members at the following General Meeting.

2)     The Party Constitution should be capable of being changed by a motion at the Annual General Meeting of the Party, by Party members on the basis of One Member One Vote with a 60% majority of those voting.

 At present there are parts of the Constitution which get changed without the members having any say and have no knowledge until the change is published.   For example the Rules on the Selection of Candidates are changed almost every year by the Candidates Committee and members have no say in these changes.   Similarly the 1922 Committee can change the Rules for the Leadership election without the members knowing until the change is published as a fait accompli.   Sub Committees of the Party Board or indeed the Party Board itself should not be allowed to change the Constitution.   They can make recommendations but it is up to the members of the Party to agree rule changes.  

3)     Constituency Associations should have the right to determine who their Conservative Parliamentary Candidate is, with minimum interference by CCHQ.   This includes both selecting and deselecting candidates and selecting or deselecting their Member of Parliament   Any member of the Party should be able to apply to be the candidate.   Local candidates i.e., those resident in the Constituency, should be invited for interview by the Executive Council.

Where a Constituency Association passes a motion of no confidence in their MP in General Meeting they should be able to immediately start the process of selecting a new parliamentary candidate.

 CCHQ would have an advisory role for the conduct of due diligence which must be carried out before the Candidate is finally elected.   There would be safeguards for Constituencies where their membership is below 150 members.   This restores the autonomy of Constituency Associations and is back to the situation prior to 1998 when the new Constitution was implemented.

4)     The Spring Conference should be a policy conference where Ministers would listen to members ideas on policies in their subject area selected by motions submitted through the Executive Council of local associations.

 This Conference is not to determine the policy of the Party but to demonstrate the views of the Party membership to the Leader.

5)     The Party Conference should be controlled by a subcommittee of the Party Board consisting of a majority of voluntary members of the Party.   There should be motions for debate and votes taken on those motions.

 The motions submitted by the local associations through their Executive Councils should be printed on the Party web site at the time the Agenda for the Party Conference is published.   Pre 1998 the Party Conference was run and controlled by the voluntary Party.   This change reverts back to that position.

 6)     The Rules for the Election of the Party Leader to be incorporated within the main body of the Constitution.

At present the Rules for the election of the Party Leader are controlled by the 1922 Committee which can and does change them without any reference to Party members.   For example in 2016 only a Proposer and Seconder were required for an MP to put his name forward as a candidate. In 2019 this changed to eight Nominations required.   In 2022 20 nominations were required. In late 2022 100 nominations required

 7)     A Constitution Commission should be immediately set up to propose changes to the Party Constitution with the remit that it should be a democratic Constitution with the emphasis on directly involving members of the Party on the basis of One Member One Vote and to report back by 31 August 2025.

 There are many areas of the Constitution that require reform.   For example: Regional Officers should be elected by and accountable to the members of the Region at an Annual General Meeting of the Region to which all members residing in the Region are invited.

The Rules of Local Associations need reform particularly relating to the suspension of members and the selection of local government candidates.   Should Executive Councils be based on branches or wards.   Is there a conflict between Councillors who are the local political voice of an Association also being Constituency Chairmen responsible for the organisation in the Constituency?

Do Federations of Constituencies add another layer of bureaucracy or should Constituencies be encouraged to share resources whilst retaining their autonomy?

Objects and values of the Conservative Party should be included as an appendix to the Constitution.   At present they are called for but nowhere defined.