Having pledged to ‘level up’ the country during the last election, it seems that CCHQ are determined to practice what they preach. With Treasury civil servants set to move next year across the country to a new campus at Darlington, party apparatchiks in Tory central office are following suit. Party co-chair Amanda Milling announced plans for a new hub in Leeds at October’s virtual conference ‘in the heart of the blue wall.’
Now CCHQ has stepped up recruitment, advertising yesterday for its first party apprentices in Leeds in the fields of ‘finance and marketing.’ Whereas once it was Oxbridge wonderkids like David Cameron, Chris Patten and Steve Hilton who comprised the bulk of the backroom boys, the party now hopes to attract ‘candidates from underprivileged or non-traditional backgrounds.’ To this end it is working alongside the Patchwork Foundation – the social mobility charity which earned the ire of the Morning Star after being accused of ‘rigging’ its public vote for the MP of the Year competition to ‘prevent’ Jeremy Corbyn from winning.
But while CCHQ is remaining resolutely on-message in its hiring practices, it appears not all party associations got the memo. On the same day that adverts for the £18,000 a year apprentices went up, a similar notice appeared for Westminster North Conservatives – the neighbouring constituency to where CCHQ is currently based in Matthew Parker Street. Offering just ‘travel and lunch’ expenses it claims this is ‘an excellent opportunity for you to enhance your CV’ proudly boasting how past unpaid interns have ‘gone on to work for Conservative MPs and The Policy Research Unit.’
Steerpike looks forward to seeing if the much-trumpeted Leeds base will actually change the composition of the party’s rising stars in the future.
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