Cameron back from Crete and uncompromising

David Cameron is back from holiday and is in uncompromising mood.

In an interview with the BBC's Nick Robinson he delivered the following key messages:

The party is doing well: "I've made serious changes to this party, brought it into the mainstream, huge success at the local elections - the party's now by far the largest party in local government."

The big political picture is the Tories are at the centre and Labour is lurching left: "Of course the last couple of weeks haven't been as smooth as I'd like, but when the smoke clears and you look at what's happening, it's the Conservative Party in the centre ground, there for everybody, while Labour is lurching off to the left in a deputy leadership contest that's all about tax rises and trade union powers and the rest of it."

There may be a need for more explanation but modernisation will continue: "Sometimes that can mean you do have to explain more to your party and the country exactly why the changes are so important but I'm not going to flinch, I'm not going to stop in making the changes."

You can read more on BBC Online.  Sam will be posting highlights of the Conservative leader's Islamic speech soon...

10am update on 6 June: NIck Robinson has written about the interview on his blog:

"Only a handful of Tories were offended by David Cameron's insistence that he wouldn't create more grammar schools. After all, he was only highlighting existing party policy. Many though objected violently to the assertion (by his Education Spokesman David Willets) that grammar schools were bad for social mobility which they feared could be used as an argument to close those grammars which still exist.

Hence their demand that Cameron make clear that he might indeed open a handful of new selective schools in areas that already have them.

This was not, in fact, a policy U-turn, even though it looked like one and was a presentational disaster. It was though evidence, as one senior Tory put it to me, that the Cameron honeymoon is well and truly over."

Comments

[Perdix]

Kingbongo 21.56 - You are so right! (You will only be reading this if you could drag yourself thru this bitch-fight). This site takes great pleasure in undermining the leadership. Each year I meet hundreds of Tory supporters and activists. They are kind, thoughtful and generous.The wingnuts have left.

[Downsize the NHS]

No problem Oberon. Will the last person to leave the oil rig please switch off the lights?

Seems to me that we're at last building up a head of steam in favour of true libertarian Conservatism. If we've got the collectivists on the run, so much the better.

"Each year I meet hundreds of Tory supporters and activists."

How come? Are you David Cameron or something?

[Oberon Houston]

Downsize the NHS: Its getting late, and you have school tomorrow. Bed. Now!

ps: Im not on the run, just don't want to waste any more of my time conversing with idiots.

[Matt Wright]

Well yes, the negative posters who deliberately disrupt this site were out in force again in this thread as on others. It wasn't really about grammar schools for them, that was just another thing for them to whinge about. They were having a go at DC long before that are now seeking some more petty things to dig at. Many of them actually support UKIP or even the BNP and just post on this site to pursue their own agendas, often under anonymous names. They are not representative of ordinary members or certainly not of ordinary voters,

Matt

[Pudsey]

First time on here and many of the ridiculous comments from people on here are the reason so many people still view the tories as the nasty party, poll upon poll has shown that camerons association and his idea's benefit the party, so its about time we showed him some support.

Comments about an SDP tory party are absurd and show out of touch a lot of people on here are with the general publics opinion.

Maybe this site should be rebranded neo-conservative home?

[Bradford]

Comments about an SDP tory party are absurd and show out of touch a lot of people on here are with the general publics opinion.

Including yourself Pudsey or do you think Andrew Carter had a soplendid result in Leeds ?

[Observer]

Many of them actually support UKIP or even the BNP

Actually Matt from Wales I had you marked down as a BNP supporter; you mention it so often I thought I detected subtle attempts to bring it and UKIP into the thread at every opportunity. Just what is your agenda ?

[Chelloveck]

"ps: Im not on the run, just don't want to waste any more of my time conversing with idiots.

I see that you have learnt little since publicly calling Graham Brady a creep last week Oberon.

No wonder those of us insulted by you here see it as a badge of honour...

[Traditional Tory]

First time on here

Really? At 5.41 in the morning?

and many of the ridiculous comments from people on here are the reason so many people still view the tories as the nasty party

Actually they don't. That bon mot came from La May courtesy of (allegedly) that well-known moderate and rabbit-fancier Douglas Smith.

The people you are talking about rightly regard certain Tory politicians (note - not the grassroots) as incompetent, venal and immoral.

poll upon poll has shown that camerons association and his idea's benefit the party

The polls show that Cameron has benefitted from the 'absentee landlordism' of Blair. Now that's set to change.

so its about time we showed him some support.

Well you're doing that, aren't you?

But please don't include Conservatives in the 'we'

Maybe this site should be rebranded neo-conservative home?

The most ridiculous comment of all. Most (admittedly not all) patriotic Conservatives detest the Neo-Con warmongers as much as I do.

I abhor 51st Staters as much as I loathe Eurofanatics.

[CCTV]

The polls show that Cameron has benefitted from the 'absentee landlordism' of Blair. Now that's set to change.

In fact Cameron was not even necessary until Blair decided to step down.....then there was a mad rush to find a front man to replace Blair before Brown could undo the profitable business arrangements Blair had facilitated.

It is amusing how they packaged Cameron for delivery - shades of Chauncy Gardener

[TomTom]

The level of debate is usually of a much higher level

I used to find OUCA mindnumbingly dull....although I did find chats with Madsen Pirie and Tim Congdon amusing, and Norm Blackwell was so bean-counterish

[Nasty Party]

Party conferences monochromatic, eh?

What about that famouns occasion when the Leader was making his spech and one of the old geezers in the front row reacted with a "technicolor yawn".

Eloquent!

[Pudsey]

Traditional Tory 6.37am.

I'm currently in Australia and bored in my office work I had a look on the site as it tends to get a lot of stick from other political sites - and now i can start to see why.

If you took some time to look a little closer at opinion polls, whenever cameron has held a strong media presence there has been positive opinion polls for the conservatives. Even the recent grammar school row, which has been a PR nightmare despite him putting across a view which is in tune with public opinion, coupled with the current supposed halo above browns head, he is still 3-5 points ahead.

Brown and definitely whichever deputy accompanies him is going to move Labour left albeit only slightly of where they are now and it makes perfect political strategy to occupy the centre ground with these policies, even if it does alienate the (supposed) grassroots slightly as these peole generally don't live in the area's where the votes count as much.

I left a grammar school about 7 yrs ago and whilst it did benefitted my education, they do create a large social divide and there is no need to extend the current numbers. The idea that he's ridding some poor kids of their right to a decent education is absurd.

If cameron focuses on the NHS, Environment, Streaming in Schools & Value for Money at the next election, we've got a fighting chance, if camerons forced to backtrack and comment on Law & Order, Immigration & Europe, we'll be typecast as the same old tories.

I'm not saying these issues aren't important but its all about public perception of the conservative brand!

[Traditional Tory]

Well Pudsey, I'm sure we're all impressed by your Gleichschaltung loyalty to in Cameron, your close interest in the polls (spookily similar spin to 'Tory T') your scrutiny of 'other sites' which allegedly give stick to CH, and your command of all the 'Roon buzzwords.

Having regard to which, forgive us for being just a little surprised and sceptical when you tell us you had to wait until you were bored and thousands of miles from home before bothering to look at this highly-influential blog for the very first time.

Unsettling for you perhaps, but CH is the authentic Voice of the Grass Roots. However, if you think you know of a better and more representative site, please do point us to it.

[TomTom]

they do create a large social divide

and public schools do not !!!!!!!!!!

[cecilia.harvey4]

Michael Miller - 22.24 yesterday

An excellent post but just one question. How can Cameron and Osborne set about destroying a government to which they have publicly stated they want to be the heirs?

[James Maskell]

I can see why Cameron wishes to be seen to be leading but with a Party that isnt fully into One Nation Conservatism (for my sins Im Thatcherite) I think hes risking a lot. When Blair got his infamous Clause 4, it was on an issue which the Party had basically moved on with anyway so it just looked revolutionary whilst in reality changing little. What Cameron is actually doing is picking issues which the Party really havent moved on from...and rightly so. Education isnt an issue which Cameron can describe debate as entirely pointless. Its not smart politics from Cameron here.

Cameron needs to work with the Party more. He cant go full blown yet. Patience is the key here.

[Editor]

This hasn't been an edifying thread. I'm closing it now. I'll be posting on the comments policy later.