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Lynton Crosby

It looks like David Cameron will not be relying on Populus during his re-election campaign. (Photo by Darren Staples - WPA Pool/Getty Images)

Unpopulus

2 May 2013 14:30

Steerpike is back in print in today’s Spectator. Here’s a taste of what to expect: ‘It’s been a tricky few days for Populus, the ultracool research organisation. Once the Tories’… Continue reading

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Sarah Wollaston complained about suggestions that MPs shouldn't tweet their thoughts on the state of the party. Picture: PA

Tory loyalists strike back

12 March 2013 20:10

Lynton Crosby spoke to Tory MPs this evening about the imporance of party discipline. With the Chief Whip in the chair, meetings of the Tory parliamentary party are normally fairly… Continue reading

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Adam Afriyie's team say they've stopped seven or eight letters calling for a leadership contest going to Graham Brady. Picture: Getty

The Tory leadership needs to make MPs feel valued, not stop them tweeting

12 March 2013 16:37

Lynton Crosby is holding his election strategy meeting (first revealed on Coffee House) with Tory MPs at 5.30 this afternoon. One of the things he’ll bring up, as reported by… Continue reading

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The battle for Eastleigh: not just on the ground. Photo: PA.

The Tories take tips from Obama in Eastleigh

19 February 2013 12:04

Eastleigh could be a turning point in by-election history. Not because the Tories are looking like they may well lose, as the Times (£) suggests this morning, but as the moment the party… Continue reading

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Has the Wizard of Oz had his say in the great benefits debate?

Follow Lynton’s yellow brick briefing

8 January 2013 14:36

The benefits debate in Westminster will rage on long after today’s vote in the Commons. It’s not just a straight row between the government and opposition over who is really… Continue reading

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Is the Wizard of Oz already fuming?

Guto’s Revenge

21 November 2012 12:04

Look out for Mr Steerpike in this week’s Spectator magazine, but here’s a taster of what’s coming up: ‘Lynton Crosby’s swear-box is filling up. The Aussie strategist may have guided… Continue reading

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Image: Getty.

The death of principle

21 November 2012 10:22

If you only have time to read one full length newspaper piece today, read this one by George Bridges, the former backroom Tory guru and CPS director. It is a brilliant,… Continue reading

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Lord Ashcroft has some friendly advice for Lynton Crosby. Image: Getty

Lord Ashcroft’s friendly advice for Lynton Crosby

20 November 2012 13:07

‘Passive Aggressiveness – a personality trait or disorder marked by a pervasive pattern of negative attitudes and passive, usually disavowed, resistance in interpersonal or occupational situations.’ Theory aside, Lord Ashcroft’s… Continue reading

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David Cameron is a leader with a lot to say; Lynton Crosby will help him to say it. Image: Getty.

How Lynton Crosby could save the Tories in 2015

18 November 2012 12:17

Over the summer, the balance of probability nudged away from a Cameron win towards a Miliband win in 2015. The collapse of the boundary review deal lifted the bar for… Continue reading

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Grant Shapps today announced that the Conservatives would select candidates for 2015 using the existing constituency boundaries. Picture: Getty.

Grant Shapps confirms that 20 of the 40 Tory target seats are Lib Dem held

18 November 2012 12:03

On the Sunday Politics just now, Grant Shapps confirmed to Andrew Neil The Spectator’s story that 20 of the 40 Tory target seats at the next election are Liberal Democrat… Continue reading

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The team to deliver to a Conservative majority?

David Cameron brings in the Wizard of Oz

18 November 2012 9:47

After months of will he/won’t he, Lynton Crosby has decided to join the Cameron clan. The Sunday Telegraph reports that the Australian strategist behind Boris’ two victories has signed up as a… Continue reading

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Lynton Crosby (far right) is being tipped to join Cameron's 2015 campaign.

Adding a bit of mongrel to Number 10

25 October 2012 16:24

The saga of whether Lynton Crosby, the hard-charging Australian strategist who ran Boris Johnson’s successful mayoral campaigns, will join the Cameron operation continues. I understand that contrary to popular belief… Continue reading

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The Tory leadership is in talks with Lynton Crosby, the Australian spin supremo. Image: Getty.

Rumours of Lynton Crosby’s return snowball

22 October 2012 16:24

Plenty of newspapers have been following the scent of my magazine report that Lynton Crosby is about to return to the Tory fold. Here’s something to help them along. One… Continue reading

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Is Lynton Crosby about to replace George Osborne as the Tories' election supremo. Image: Getty.

Tight-lipped Lynton

17 October 2012 16:38

The Steerpike column will appear in tomorrow’s new issue of the Spectator magazine. Here is a taste of what is inside: Is George Osborne about to be replaced as the… Continue reading

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Cameron and Osborne are in this together. Photo: Getty Images.

Never mind about David, we need to talk about George

27 August 2012 13:42

It’s a familiar theme: the Tory conference is approaching, David Cameron is in trouble and knives are coming out for him. But how much of the problems are of his… Continue reading

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