Westminster loves defections; they are tangible sign of the direction in which the wind is blowing. So, David Freud’s decision to move out of Labour’s orbit and to the Conservatives is being treated as big news in the village.
Tory Kremlinologists should note that it was George Osborne who reeled him in. This is a sign of both Osborne’s continuing importance to the Cameron project and the fact that Freud will be reporting into the leadership not Theresa May.
Paul Waugh blogs that the Tories should now be reaching out to two former heads of Blair’s No 10 policy unit, Geoff Mulgan who is now running the Young Foundation and Matthew Taylor who is at the RSA. But here, the Tories are ahead of the game. The Tory policy unit already enjoys warms and constructive relations with Mulgan. While the Tories are talking to Taylor and the RSA about behaviour change, a field that Osborne’s team of wonks have made their own.
As a Tory victory becomes more and more likely, more and more people will be drawn to the party. If you want to get your ideas turned into policy, it is now the Tories you want to hitch your star to.
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