Lord Davies of Grantham?

I heard Ed Balls on BBC Radio 4's Today program referring to Quentin Davies as Lord Davies of Grantham. This, after Quentin Davies has said he does not want a place in the House of Lords.

Was Ed mischief making or has Quentin got all the moral courage of Harriet Harman?

Quentin Davies Defection just does not make sense

Thinking it through, the reasons for his defection are idiotic.

He wants to belong to a party that is affiliated to the EPP (so he joins one that’s affiliated to the European Socialists);

He doesn’t like Cameron’s line on grammar schools (so joins a party that wants to abolish them);

He didn’t like Greg Clark’s praise for Polly Toynbee (so joins a party that admires Polly Toynbee);

He is strongly in favour of the Iraq War (so joins a party whose Deputy Leader said they should apologise over Iraq - though she denies it now);

He doesn’t like Cameron’s policies on pensions or the family (so joins a party whose policies on pensions and the family are far removed from his own);

plus he favours fox-hunting (which Labour voted to ban) and is opposed to homosexual equality (so joins a party that favours it).

It’s a bit like falling out with someone, chopping off your right arm, waving it at them and yelling “there, you bastard, that’ll show you.”

By Sean Fear, originally here, reproduced with his kind permission.

Quentin Davies defection update

Well, there has needless to say been some reaction to this defection.

Conservative Home has the full text of his letter here. It seems one of his prime motivations was David Cameron's fairly Euro sceptic stance.

David Cameron's reply is:

Dear Quentin,

Thank you for your letter. Your decision does not come as a surprise to me.

The Conservative Party has changed, as you say. We need to do more to protect the environment and tackle climate change. That will mean taking tough measures on carbon emissions. And it does mean looking at ways to encourage greater use of alternative sources of energy. Of course, I will also continue to stand up for Britain’s interests in Europe, and work to give the British people the referendum they were promised.

People see that we are now focusing on what matters to them. That is why so many people are supporting us once again – as shown in May, when we won over 900 Council seats.

I am sorry that you feel unable to be part of today’s Conservative Party, and join us in campaigning on what matters to people – for example, against the NHS cuts or for a better deal for pensioners. The big dividing line in British politics is between Labour’s approach of top down State control and the Conservative vision of pushing power outwards and downwards from central government, trusting people and sharing responsibility with them. You have made your choice and the British people will make theirs.

Thank you for your support in the past. We will watch your future career with interest.

Other reactions from this BBC article:

But Mr Hill said: "I think it's a slap in the face for all of those people who supported and went round for him.

"I feel very strongly, I don't approve of politicians who stand under one flag and then change to another flag for their own convenience. It is an act of treachery and betrayal, frankly."

David Davis, the shadow home secretary, said he was "extremely surprised" at the news.

Sir Nicholas Winterton, Conservative MP for Macclesfield, called for Mr Davies to resign his seat, adding: "All I say is 'good riddance'."

Tory peer Lord Tebbit said: "This defection will raise the average standard of members on the Conservative side and lower it on the Labour side."

Shadow industry secretary Alan Duncan said Mr Davies was "not socially liberal" and against "a changed Conservative Party".

He added: "And basically he's quite grand and old fashioned, and I'm surprised that he finds that the Labour Party will offer him a happy home for those attitudes."

There are also rumours that he faced deselection in his constituency.

Nick Robinson has an interesting piece on his blog here. Iain Dale also has this interesting article here, and what Quentin thought of Gordon Brown today and last year!

Update:

I forgot to hat tip Rik W on politicalbetting.com for the text of Cameron's letter.

Quentin Davies: Rat Joins Sinking Ship

It seems Quentin Davies, MP for Grantham and Stamford has defected from the Conservative party to the Labour party.

In an open letter to David Cameron he says he is leaving because:

"Under your leadership the Conservative Party appears to me to have ceased collectively to believe in anything, or to stand for anything.

"It has no bedrock. It exists on shifting sands. A sense of mission has been replaced by a PR agenda."

Has he not read Built to Last? Or heard Cameron's speech last week which built on good old solid Conservative principles?

Well, if he can't read or listen, then he does not seem to be much of a loss to me.

The BBC has this.

Rats join sinking ship!

In what has to be a somewhat unusual move two rats appear to have joined a rapidly sinking whip.

These would be two Conservative members of the House of Lords who have joined UKIP, namely Lord Pearson of Rannoch and Lord Willoughby de Broke. You can read the article in the Times here.

It will be remembered that Nigel Farrage was elected leader after the farce with Robert "The Tangerine Man" Kilroy Silk joined and left to form his own party VeritArse (Who he then left).

UKIP now seem to be in some sort of state of complete collapse with local associations collapsing all over the place like for example Southend, West Dorset and now Plymouth!

West Brom Blog has this, whilst Iain Dale has this and the BBC has this.

Of course the Times article has it as bad new for David Cameron, but you have to laugh don't you? If two people, clearly dafter than a brush rush to join a sinking ship you have to say good riddence, and *cough* good bye! (Or words to that effect)