Local Tories in

'PM must go'

call to save their

own skins

OK, we said that we weren't blogging again until next week – but when an outbreak of Boskeg Soskins occurs, exceptions have to be made.

Boskeg Soskins?

It stands for Boston and Skegness Conservatives Save our Skins – a campaign launched last night after local Tories joined at least 70 other party associations up and down the country to demand that Prime Minister Theresa May resigns.

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In a letter to the Chairman of the Conservative Party Brandon Lewis, and the Chairman of the 1922 Committee Graham Brady, our local leaders and council candidates say:

We write to formally express our complete loss of confidence in the Prime Minister; her ability to deliver the Brexit the people of Boston voted for and which she has so often pledged to deliver; and her ability to lead HM Government to deliver on the broader domestic policy agenda our Party is committed to.

While we have the greatest personal sympathy for the Prime Minister and recognise the strain and efforts she has undergone, we believe the end of the road has been reached and the time has come for her to take full responsibility for the litany of failures over the last two years which now imperils Brexit itself. It has long been the custom in this country that politicians who have their policies rejected by the people or by colleagues resign. The Prime Minister’s programme for government was rejected by the people in the disastrous 2017 General Election; her central policy on Brexit has been rejected by her former Foreign Secretary, two former Brexit Secretaries, and now by Parliament on three separate occasions.

So great is the disconnect between the promises made and the delay and distrust now delivered, we call upon the Prime Minister to now resign. We call for this with much regret but for the good of the Party we love, the Brexit the people voted for, and securing a stable government for our country.

It is necessary to enable a successor to be chosen who can restore trust and goodwill within our Party, and to regain the faith and confidence of our voters and supporters; a successor who would be best placed to deliver the Brexit that the people of Boston were promised. These are the views of moderate and loyal Conservatives. We are thoroughly appalled at a Prime Minister who promised to deliver Brexit, who repeated “No deal is better than a bad deal” ad nauseum (sic) now selling out to Jeremy Corbyn. Some of us were prepared to compromise to get Brexit over the line through Chequers and the Withdrawal Agreement, but this is now a betrayal too far.

These views also reflect the opinions of so many voters canvassed over the course of the local elections and are representative of the local people who have supported the Conservatives, who want to vote for us, but feel utterly betrayed by the present leadership.

This is likely to have a real impact on blameless local Conservative candidates across the country. Despite our positive local messages, good record in office, and effective future plans, the damage done to our Party by the failure of our Leadership to get on with Brexit will harm the delivery of good local services, and the jobs and investment local people rely on. Only by a change at the very top might we reset the trust and good will which has been squandered and deliver the Brexit that was promised.

We trust you will convey these views to relevant colleagues and to the Prime Minister.

The main signatories are Councillors Tom Ashton, Paul Skinner, Nigel Welton, and Mike Cooper – respectively Association Deputy Chairman; cabinet member and branch Chairman; cabinet member and branch deputy chairman and Leader of the Council.

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The letter is also “subscribed to” by the 22 remaining candidates in next week's elections.

Subscribed by the following local candidates for Boston Borough Council: Frank Pickett, Sue Bell, Katie Chalmers, Judith Skinner, Jonathan Noble, Yvonne Stevens, Martin Griggs, Alistair Arundell, Sarah Fitzgerald, Matt Barnes, Gerry Roffey, Alastair Hamilton, Anna Szwedzinska, Martin Howard, Deborah Evans, Shaun Blackman, David Brown, Paula Cooper, Aaron Spencer, Chelcei Sharman, George Cornah and Anton Dani.

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It is scarcely a case of reading between the lines to interpret the final two paragraphs …

The voters who feel “utterly betrayed” are telling candidates who bang on their doors that they are so fed up with the antics of MPs in the Brexit debate – which some have cynically used to skew matters into a leadership contest with themselves in poll position – that they will not be voting Tory.

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The signatories doubtless include themselves among the “blameless” local candidates – and the bottom line is that they are scared stiff of losing office … and with very good reason.

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We suspect that by signing up to the Daisy Must Go movement after so many other associations have paved the way indicates a certain disline at having to stand up and be counted – but overall we suspect that with less than ten days before the local elections the move may be too late to save many Tory councillors from losing their seats ... both here in Boston as well as the country as a whole.

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Local MP Matt Warman told Boston Eye that he was not a signatory to the letter – but did not respond when asked if he endorsed the contents.

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