All comments are now moderated

Tim Montgomerie

As of a few minutes ago all comments left on ConservativeHome will only be published after one of the editors has approved them.

The quality of threads has deteriorated badly in recent months with some individuals persistently raising pet topics, regardless of the subject. Others engage in puerile baiting of other commenters. And then we have too many people using the site to promote UKIP and the BNP.

Jonathan, Paul, Harry and I will endeavour to publish all constructive comments quickly - we don't want debate to become very slow. We will publish comments that disagree with ConHome lines or with the Coalition - we are not wanting to censor reasonable people. Our main aim is to restore the threads to a degree of readability.

In recent weeks I've lost count of the number of people who say "I still love ConHome but can't bear the threads anymore". By reluctantly introducing full comment moderation we are quite ready for the number of comments to fall significantly if, as a result, the quality of the threads is restored. My English teacher used to tell me that she'd rather have a polished diamond than a wheelbarrow full of cobbles. Contribute a thoughtful comment, in adherence with our comments policy, and it will be published. For those who can't do that, ConservativeHome is now closed to you.