Reading this, it makes you realise just how much things have changed in the last few years. We now have facebook, twitter, serious campaign websites, photo galleries, youtube and deep campaign outreach on the internet. Labour have been working hard at catch up, yet the early planning ahead on the Conservative side has paid off in harnessing technology for campaigning. It is predictable that Labour commentators like Progress' Jessica Asato and Labourlist's Alex Smith seek to belittle the Conservative efforts, yet a real achievement has been made. And on the "unofficial" side, the impact of the Conservative blogosphere cannot be underestimated - as we readers of this site know only too well. However, even with all this technology, there is no alternative to the foot slog of door knocking, leaflets and getting the vote out on the day.
The harnessing of technology in campaigning has been a transformation. Yet the Conservatives plan a technology revolution in Government. The "post bureaucratic age" agenda will have a dramatic effect on Government at a number of levels. This term is quite hard to explain on the doorstep! So I have taken to describing this agenda as Government for the people, by the people and of the people - where everyone can have more of a say in what goes on in their communities and on what Government does more generally. The response to this is enthusiastic. The people . . . really have had enough of hectoring Government and want to have more of a say about what goes on.
