Now Cameron must act

TGF UKIP

Ah! my faith in the Cameron Tory Party is restored.

DavefromLuton

He should drop them all from the shadow cabinet. Grayling and Gove, particularly will be missed but not the others and at least the Tories could then press Brown to follow suit

Bob.India

I've just emailed the following to Cameron - camerond@parliament.uk . No doubt the message will be quickly deleted and forgotten, but if enough citizens do the same, surely the message might filter through?

Dear Mr Cameron

Some high profile Tory MP sackings, following tomorrow’s (11 May 09) Telegraph revelations of expense abuses on your side of the House, will do wonders for your standing in the collective eye of the electorate and cannot fail to propel you into No 10 in very short order. Now is the time for brutal and decisive leadership.

You remain the only hope for a nation currently in desperate peril.

Best regards

Pete, Scotland

This may Cameron's moment, like Brown's election that never was, if he doesn't grab and win it he may lose it.

Many people of all political affiliation feel that we now need to cleanse the system and have a fresh start.

If Cameron can't deliver then by this time next year he may find that he lost his moment, just like Brown.

Verity

TGF UKIP - Ironic, I hope.

Prodicus

Labour’s official reaction was their deputy leader (who wanted it all suppressed) on all channels ‘explaining’ the ’system’ and saying people had acted in good faith blah, and let’s not even think about Brown’s rellies coming out wringing their hands on his personal behalf.

Conservative response has been *the leader* (who says publish expenses on the web) saying ‘it’s wrong and *individuals must explain themselves and say sorry*’.

Vast gulf between the two. Voters will notice and remember that gulf when all the other details have faded away.

Don

Dave should discipline Gove and Grayling etc., thus heaping more pressure on the miserable Brown to do something. But what could Brown do, sack 70% of his cabinet?

Dave is really onto a winner here... general election within 2 months anybody?

Aetius

I guess the future writers will put it this way:

Brown and the Labour Party were toast after this latest scandal. In the middle of the following month the PM faced a leadership challenge, which he lost, as the PLP knew he was a major liability going into the next election. The result was the third PM in two years, which was not conducive to good governance. Then, a general election was demanded and given. Labour lost to a massive landslide defeat, imploded and were at each others' throats for a decade.

Get the popcorn, sit back and enjoy.

Simon Denis

He'll have to sack these men. The Telegraph - which was once a wise, sedate and conservative paper - heaven knows what it is now - has whipped up such a storm of indignation that a mere apology will be seen as insulting. It is a pity because Gove is a worthy and intelligent man. In calmer times, he could doubtless explain himself. At the moment, nobody will listen. There is a mood of hysteria in the attitude of the public - a whirlwind of rage. It recalls the world of 1997 - Dianamania and the election of Blair. Cameron may not want to ride the storm as Labour did, but he must, must, must get out of its way.

Incidentally, just like all these hysterical movements of opinion - the Gurkha issue is another one - the public is wrong. Politicians are naturally greedy because they are ambitious. There is no record of any democracy anywhere in which the political class has not been on the make. The aristocratic government of Britain enjoyed the services of disinterested men because they were loaded in the first place. It is naive to expect the ruck of democratic politicians to do anything other than help themselves. The mediocre among them can't believe their luck and the capable might be earning vast sums elsewhere.

Rhys Burriss

Cameron's line is that 'the system' is at fault. Actually a system which permits claims for 2nd homes relating to 'wholly and exclusively necessary etc' expenses is not per se at fault. The fraudulent claims - eg for things which are not wholly and exclusively necessary; plus the false declarations that - eg a spare room in a sister's house is her 'main' home are not only at fault but fraudulent. They can tell their ridiculous excuses - Cameron included as character witness for Gove et al - to the jury in due course. Was that a big queue of MPs I saw at the John Lewis underpants counter ?

peter

I hope the labour goverment just **** off and does us all a favour ASAP but then thats not going to happen is it.

JohnAnt

Ultimately, it will do no good at all if Cameron goes round sacking all and sundry. It should be strategic. For God's sake, don't sack Gove, who is one of the brightest shadow ministers, and a key player in the Tory education reform. Gove does have a defence of sorts, and as long as he fesses up frankly and doesn't stonewall as (as the repulsive Mandelson, Woolas et al have done), he should be able to face the Commons with a clean conscience. As to the rest - Chancy Gardener Duncan must go, that behaviour is simply too greedy and arrogant. Grayling and Maude are borderline, perhaps sacking Maude and Lansley (both too wet in my book) would free up the future Tory government team.
The last concern Dave should have is a moral one. If he had any moral concerns, he'd insist on stopping Lisbon and reversing immigration. Let's have no masochistically selective scruples about expenses. Change the system honourably, call for a new Speaker, speak out, harness the country's rage. Or step aside, and let a better man do the job.

TomTom

This is Cameron's Clause IV Moment - fire corrupt MPs and de-select but wait until the Telegraph reveals more about Caroline Spelman

Mark

The Tory party in the Commons is already short of talent and experience. There is a case for sacking anyone who has plainly acted dishonestly and for requiring others to pay back any expenses which should not have been claimed. But wholescale sacking isn't an option.

Cameron removed the whip from Derek Conway and that sets a benchmark.

Vulture

Peter, Cameron must act, but in your heart you know that he will do nothing beyound mouth a few insincere condemnatory platitudes. So here's what true Tories should do. In Japan there used to be a (quite successful) political party called Komeito. It translates as 'Clean Government'. We need our own Komeito: Martin Bell should don his white suit again and stand against one of these crooks - Liebour or Cameroon. And other Komeeito candidates should stand against the most egregious troughers whereever they dare to re-offer themselves for re-election. OK, Komeito might not sweep the board, but in marginal seats it might well make the difference.
These porkers deserve punishment. Why, I'd get my own white suit out of mothballs and stand myself - except that my MP is the squeaky clean Norman Baker. We need more like him at Westminster.

bitter and twisted

Cameron - people will salute you if you are decisive and brutal about this. These are desperate times. The public are so outraged about this. We can do without the fat cats creaming off outrageous expenses. Ask yourself, does the country really DESERVE Maude, or Duncan? They are dishonoured and therefore dispensible.

divesandlazarus

In the most serious cases Cameron HAS to sack some of his shadow team and deselect MPs.

He must be seen to;

a) recognise what the right thing to do is and do it,

b) trump Brown and is constant obfuscation

How else can Cameron show the nation that the Tories are different?