The honeymoon is over for Cameron and the whispering campaign against him has begun

For two months now the Conservative party has been an unusually tranquil ship. What was once the most mutinous vessel in Westminster has, under David Cameron, changed tack and entered new waters without a whisper of the rebellion for which its crew has become infamous. They may disagree with the direction of travel — but after years in the doldrums, it is hard to argue with such progress, whatever the methods.

Cameron has brought the Conservative party its best publicity in a generation, set the political agenda and terrified Labour MPs by moving robustly towards the centre. This has involved asking fellow MPs to abandon policies they have cherished for years, but they have obeyed, spellbound by the audacity and momentum of his first few weeks. But now they want to ask him some questions; they want some explanations.

On Tuesday Lord Ashcroft, party donor and now deputy chairman, invited Conservatives to a meeting in Portcullis House to hear some bad news. In the opinion polls there is little evidence of the Cameron phenomenon spreading much beyond Westminster. There were encouraging signs of progress — target women voters are becoming keener — but the public remains to be convinced that the party is different from the one they rejected last year.

Lord Ashcroft asked for patience: the party has just started a long voyage. But voices of dissent piped up almost immediately — would it not be better to stick to Conservative principles rather than chase polls and tear up so much of the manifesto? It says much about the loyalty Cameron inspires that such comments drew groans from others in the room. But the whispers of disgruntled Conservatives have now become audible once more. First come the major donors, on whom the party is uniquely dependent.