The most popular post this week was Conservative Vandalised Billboards which I followed-up yesterday with the Big Society posts (and see here). Related was the interest in the TBH’s polling results in my Cornwall’s Tories are Stuffed. Also this week, I drew attention to Conservative PPC for Camborne and Redruth George Eustice’s pitch on his Green credentials. Mr Eustice might care to use his influence as an ex-speech writer for cycling, sledging Dave, to have a word in his leader’s shell-like about how Cameron lets the plane take the strain. Oh, and I’m still waiting a reply from Mr Derek Thomas about Mr Chris Grayling’s endorsement of homophobia.
No sooner do I draw attention to the connection between Tories in Cornwall and landowners and farmers (see my post, ‘Cornwall’s Tories are stuffed‘), than, obligingly, one pops up to confirm it in the shape of former strawberry farmer George Eustice, Tory candidate for Camborne and Redruth, and former press secretary to something of the night Mr Michael Howard and The Toff. Mr Eustice is keen to tell us of how deep his roots reach into the local soil with a guided tour of his family’s farm. Also down on the Eustice farm this weekend along with South Devon breed beef have been ‘old friends’ of George’s – one from the Conservative Press Office, no less.
‘Food yards, not food miles’ is George’s election battle cry. Well, it may help though I should have thought that the voters of Camborne and Redruth have rather more important things on their minds this election than the news that Mr Eustice’s pork derives from free-range British Lop pigs. Like how best to use tactical voting to send Tory parliamentary candidates back to the milking sheds.
The Baulking House has just carried out its first poll of voting intentions in Cornwall in the general election and its findings couldn’t be clearer – Cornwall’s Tories are stuffed.
I have just taken a bus ride between St Ives and Penzance and counted the number of election posters for the St Ives Constituency displayed along the route: a forest of posters exhorting us to back Lib Dem candidate Andrew George (‘Standing up for Cornwall’) and just five for Derek Thomas (‘Change’) the Tory candidate. AND while Mr George’s posters sprouted from the gardens of private houses, three of Mr Thomas’ posters were on farmland – two of which were on the same farmer’s fields. Now that’s not a very helpful message to voters from a party claiming to be of ‘the people’.
It’s true Mr Thomas’ posters were larger than those of Mr George’s, but I don’t think that skews my findings in any way. (It’s a mystery to me why England’s farmers think that the Tory party is for them. In the past French farmers more sensibly always voted communist). Perhaps our lot believe Cameron’s promise to rough-up Tesco over what the supermarket pays Farmer Giles for his milk, but I predict that, if Cameron wins, they’ll be disappointment down on the farm as thick as cow shit. Just in case you are in anyway sympathetic to farmers who moan about Big Bad Tesco, I suggest you factor into your considerations the massive subsidies we throw at our farmers – some of whom seem to think they are in the business of growing money rather than oats.
The only consolation I can offer Mr Thomas is that he looks rather charming and civilised in his poster photograph (I’m assuming there’s been no airbrushing). But, as I have observed before, what on earth is he doing standing for the Nasties? Is Christianity to blame?
I urge everyone who wants to make a real contribution to the run-up to the general election in Cornwall to replicate my evidenced-based polling technique and send in the results to the blog via Leave a comment. Who needs Gallup?
