Just one year ago 125 Tory MPs, including myself, lost our seats. After 14 years in power – and a particularly turbulent final stretch – a Labour victory had seemed inevitable. We looked exhausted, divided and without a clear direction. Tribal ill-discipline repeatedly undermined Rishi Sunak’s efforts to steady the ship and effectively handed Labour the win. What surprised many of us was the scale of that win – a majority just shy of Tony Blair’s 1997 landslide. It felt grim.
Labour had played it ultra-safe: said little, stayed low, and won a 174-seat majority. Looking back, it’s clear the Conservatives could have lost better. With more unity, humility and purpose, we might have limited the damage. Sadly, tribal factions were already laying out post-election leadership stalls in the middle of the general election.
A couple of weeks later, Rishi Sunak invited the 125 of us for a drink at the Carlton Club. Far from being a wake, there was a clear collective spirit: we still had fire in our bellies and a passion to return. We were not done yet.
The depth of ministerial experience in that room was impressive. There are now more former Conservative MPs than current ones. When the party returns to government, drawing on this vast pool of Whitehall experience will make complete sense.
Labour’s election strategy followed a familiar formula – one we’ve used ourselves on many occasions. Appeal beyond your base, and you can win. Move too far left or right, and you won’t get the numbers. It’s how Disraeli, Gladstone, Baldwin, Churchill, Wilson, Macmillan, Thatcher, Blair and Cameron built majorities.
But once in power, you have to make tough decisions in the national interest –not in the party’s. That formula only works if at least one major party connects with Britain at large. Today, neither seems to. We are entering a world of multi-party politics, just as we face mounting economic and security pressures.
If mainstream parties don’t offer plausible solutions, populism wins. That’s what’s happened across the continent. And it’s now happening here too, as Reform capitalises on a cautious Labour government and a Conservative Party still regrouping – but under pressure to drift to the right.
By any measure, these are testing times. The global challenges remain stubbornly familiar, if not more complex than a year ago. The erosion of the rules-based order, the war in Ukraine, China’s economic assertiveness, illegal migration and climate-related instability… All of it is feeding voter frustration and anger that populist movements are quick to exploit.
Here’s the reality check: in the 2024 general election, less than 10% of 18–30-year-olds voted Conservative. If we’re serious about rebuilding, we must not retreat to our base and hope the electorate comes to us. We need to modernise and reconnect with a generation that increasingly sees us as out of touch.
From outside Westminster, you gain a different perspective. The election loss wasn’t just political, it exposed deep structural, generational and ideological problems. We can’t just be an opposition for opposition’s sake. If the Conservative Party is to survive and thrive, it must reform, rebuild credibility and future-proof its appeal.
Here are three ideas to help get us there:
1. Put Britain First
Bowing to party interests may keep the base happy but it won’t broaden our appeal. Our leadership selection rules should change – giving Conservative MPs the final say. Let’s be honest. At present, disproportionate influence lies with a narrow, older, more ideological membership, skewing leadership contests and fuelling division.
We must trust MPs to choose leaders who can win over the country, not just the party. This would bring fresher thinking on issues like Brexit and ensure support for sensible policies – like supporting the Welfare Bill before it was gutted by Labour’s left-wing at huge cost to the taxpayer. That’s grown-up politics.
2. Clarify What We Stand For
Let’s keep it simple. Enterprise – a belief in free markets, backing those who take risks, create jobs and drive innovation.
Opportunity – ensuring everyone, regardless of background, has the chance to succeed.
Responsibility – living within our means, and encouraging personal and civic responsibility in work, welfare and citizenship.
3. Reclaim the Centre Right.
We must determine where we sit on the political spectrum. Flirting with Reform will not grow our support. It alienates moderates without converting the disillusioned. Let’s stick to our formula that wins elections: credible, centre-right, pragmatic conservatism.
The general election may come sooner than expected. Britain needs a strong Conservative Party. That starts with reform, reflection and the courage to change.
Let’s re-engage with those outside the Westminster Bubble.