THERESA MAY emerged yesterday as the champion of Conservative activists when she vowed to defend their rights to elect the next party leader.
Mrs May, Shadow Culture Secretary and former party chairman, said that denying grassroots members a say over who should lead the party would send the wrong message to voters and set back the party’s recovery for years.
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She also said that she might stand for the party leadership when Michael Howard steps down in the autumn, making her the first and probably only female candidate.
Mrs May, who once warned activists that some voters considered the party “nasty”, has written to Raymond Monbiot, chairman of the party’s ruling board, urging him to protect the rights of activists.
The board has proposed that powers to elect the next leader be returned to MPs, although activists would be able to nominate a candidate to go through to a final run-off. Last week MPs rejected this idea and a series of other options giving activists a say. Most backbenchers wanted a return to the system in which they have total control over the election of the leader, with only a “consultation” of party members.
Mrs May said that this could damage the party’s electoral fortunes. “If we are not willing to listen to and trust our own membership in the election of our leader then how can voters believe that we will listen to them when it comes to understanding their problems and finding the right solutions?” she said in her letter. “We must be acutely aware of the message that such a decision would send to voters. If this is indeed representative of how we plan to behave, then we will be out of touch and out of power.”
When she was party chairman Mrs May proposed that constituency associations hold US-style primaries to select their candidates in order to involve a wider selection of voters in the process. She said that a similar move for the election of leaders would have benefits.
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“I believe that such a system would have huge merits in the election of any leader. Adopting primaries would also be part of the process of accepting that the days of party mass membership have gone. Primaries would instead reflect the need to embrace and encourage the concept of registered supporters, in part by making it worthwhile for people to register their support in order to have a say in the future of the party,” she said.
She accepted that it would be too late to have primaries for this leadership contest, but suggested that the party consider an electoral college, where MPs had primacy but activists, MEPs and councillors had a major say.
Her views won little support among backbenchers, who are eager to win power back for themselves. “She is very much running against the tide with this suggestion,” one MP said.
However, a small band of MPs, some of whom were close to Iain Duncan Smith — who was elected leader by members — want to open up the process.
John Hayes, MP for South Holland and The Deepings, has proposed that an electoral college be set up and some senior backbenchers have said it could well emerge as a compromise solution.
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The board and powerful executive of the backbench 1922 Committee will meet shortly to try to chart a way forward in reforming the rules on the leadership.
The 1922 Committee met yesterday evening to discuss changes in the code of conduct for MPs, another unpopular part of Michael Howard’s package of reforms.
Last night Mrs May was joined by other leadership contenders at an event hosted by Mr Duncan Smith.
His think-tank, the Centre for Social Justice, awarded seven charities £23,000 for their work with vulnerable people.
THERESA’S TIME
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1956 Born in Eastbourne
May 1997 MP for Maidenhead
1998 Shadow Spokeswoman for Schools, Disabled People and Women
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1999 Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Employment
2001 Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government & the Regions
June 2002 Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
July 2002 Chairman of the Conservative Party
2003 Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport
2004 Shadow Secretary of State for the Family, Culture, Media and Sport