63 Tory MPs from all wings of party join new Blue Collar Conservative group

By Tim Montgomerie
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At the heart of ConservativeHome's Strong and Compassionate project is the idea that the party cannot just be about the creation of wealth. We must also be clear that the prosperity we will help to create will be a prosperity that everyone enjoys. We need to make it clear that our priority for tax relief is the lower-paid strivers. We also need to make it clear that we will ensure pensioners and others who depend upon the safety-net don't fall dangerously behind as the rest of the nation prospers. We need to address the reality that blue collar wages are stagnant. In America they haven't risen for forty years. The contours of the blue collar vote were revealed in recent polling undertaken by Lord Ashcroft.

A new group is formally launched today that aims to think deeply about our Party's blue collar message. It has three core beliefs:

1. The Conservative Party is at its strongest when it reaches out to voters of all backgrounds
2. The Conservatives need the support of blue collar voters to achieve an overall majority
3. The Conservatives must reward ordinary hard working voters who take responsibility for their own lives.

The group already has the support of 63 Tory MPs:

1. Stuart Andrew MP
2. Steve Baker MP
3. Julian Brazier TD MP
4. Sir Peter Bottomley MP
5. Robert Buckland MP
6. Aidan Burley MP
7. Douglas Carswell MP
8. Stephen Crabb MP
9. Christopher Chope MP
10. David T.C. Davies MP                 
11. Philip Davies MP
12. Nick de Bois MP
13. George Eustice MP
14. Graham Evans MP
15. Mark Field MP                  
16. Sir Roger Gale MP
17. John Glen MP
18. James Gray MP                 
19. Damian Green MP
20. Matthew Hancock MP
21. Gordon Henderson MP                 
22. George Hollingbery MP
23. Eleanor Laing MP                 
24. Dr Julian Lewis MP
25. Jack Lopresti MP                 
26. Jonathan Lord MP
27. Peter Luff MP      
28. Karen Lumley MP     
29. Anne Main MP
30. Paul Maynard MP
31. Jason McCartney MP        
32. Karl McCartney MP
33. Stephen McPartland MP    
34. Esther McVey MP   
35. Stephen Metcalfe MP 
36. Nigel Mills MP            
37. Anne-Marie Morris MP       
38. James Morris MP        
39. Stephen Mosely MP
40. David Mowat MP
41. Brooks Newmark MP
42. David Nuttall MP     
43. Matthew Offord MP   
44. Eric Ollerenshaw MP
45. Neil Parish MP      
46. Andrew Percy MP
47. Christopher Pincher MP                
48. Simon Reevell MP
49. Andrew Robathan MP
50. Laura Sandys MP 
51. Andrew Selous MP
52. Alec Shelbrooke MP   
53. Henry Smith MP    
54. Mark Spencer MP
55. John Stevenson MP
56. Desmond Swayne TD MP                 
57. Justin Tomlinson MP               
58. Martin Vickers MP                 
59. Robin Walker MP
60. Angela Watkinson MP                 
61. Mike Weatherley MP
62. James Wharton MP
63. The Rt Hon Sir George Young MP

One of the interesting things about that list is the way it defies all traditional pigeon holes. It brings together frontbenchers and backbenchers. Uber-loyalists and rebels. Traditionalists and modernisers.

Clark Vasey is the instigator of the group and another key player is Philip Davies MP. John Stevenson, Tory MP for Carlisle is Chairman of the Advisory Group. He issued this statement:

“Blue Collar Conservatives is a great initiative. This demographic is incredibly important to the conservative vote and there is a great need for the party to appeal to these voters at the next election. Blue Collar Conservatives make up a substantial part of my electorate in Carlisle and the Conservative Party has to have policies and values which appeal to and resonate with them. We need to support hard working people and families in order to retain and win the key seats which will produce a majority in 2015.”

I wish the group well.

> You can read more about Blue Collar Conservatism on the group's new website and follow it on Twitter.