Politics

The success of the open primary held by the Tories in Totnes could mark a turning-point in British politics. A candidate is usually selected by party members, but in Totnes all constituents were allowed to vote and they achieved a remarkable result: a turnout of one in four. Also remarkable was the candidate they chose: a doctor with little political experience who defeated two candidates, both with a long history of involvement with the Conservative party. Would the doctor, Sarah Wollaston, have been elected under the traditional system? It’s very unlikely. Party members, who make up less than 2 per cent of the population, would have chosen someone who reflected

…here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk this week. Fraser Nelson says that David Cameron should ditch the 50% tax rate, and catches his old chum Ed Balls telling porkies again. James Forsyth has Georgia on his mind, and is encouraged by rumours that a Tory government would include a designated Minister for Afghanistan. Peter Hoskin thinks the Tories must commission a second Freud report, and does not believe that tales of economic recovery will improve Brown’s situation. David Blackburn asks who is running the government at the moment and finds only confusion, and says that leaked slides of the Grey report reveal the MoD’s systemic incompetence. Clive

Marbury is quite right. The Prime Minister’s advisers must wonder what they have to do to get this Gordon Brown appearing on your TV screen. Now, there are a few things one could say about the content of Brown’s Ted Talk in Oxford but that’s a post for another time. But in general, this is good stuff: fluent, passionate, witty (yes, really) and so on. Above all, freed from the tedium and trivia and trauma of life at Westminster you see a different and relaxed big-picture Gordon. It’s almost enough to make one wonder what might have happened if only Gordon weren’t quite so bad at politics… Anyway, this is

…here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the weekend. James Forsyth says that the Afghan conflict will improve our security in the long run, and says that the Tory leadership will use seat vacancies to expand its ministerial talent pool. Peter Hoskin argues that if Mandelson runs for the Commons it will speak volumes for his relationship with Gordon Brown, and says that Harriet Harman is having another go at positioning herself for the Labour leadership. And Daniel Korski believes the Iraq Inquiry should examine bureaucracy.

Possibly! Gordon Brown’s government has a 17% approval rating and fewer than one in five voters think Brown would make a better Prime Minister than either David Cameron or, titter ye not, Nick Clegg. His government is in much the same place John Major’s was in 1996 and we know how that ended for the Tories. The Brown ministry has lost its mast and been holed, repeatedly, below the water line. Yet amidst the wreckage and the blood and the howls of agony one man insists that all is not lost and that, actually, victory remains possible. That man, folks, is Mark Penn, the American pollster and strategist last seen

…Here are some of the posts made on Spectator.co.uk over the past week: James Forsyth thinks we need a larger army, and believes that a televised electoral debate is a potential game-changer for Brown.   Peter Hoskin sees another bubble about to burst, and highlights one of Cameron’s weaknesses. David Blackburn says that the public do not trust the government on defence, and reflects on Debbie Purdy’s victory. Daniel Korski writes that army enlargement should not come at the expense of the Peace Corps in Afghanistan. Matthew Frampton and John Bew believe that we should only to talk to Taliban from a position of strength. Martin Bright wants to know what