The Tory conference was way more interesting than normal this year, because they were trying to find a leader. What it most reminded me of was the last day of the Premiership season this year.
Readers with good memories will recall that Norwich City went into the day with their fate in their own hands – a win would have guaranteed they stayed up, no matter what anyone else did. However, they got stuffed 6-0 at Craven Cottage, and suddenly they were back slugging it out in the pack. Meanwhile, West Bromwich Albion, bottom of the table at Christmas, and bottom on the last day, scored an unpredicted 2-0 win at Pompey which – in combination with other results – kept them up and saw Soton, Norwich and Palace relegated.
So, given reports from the bookies, is David Cameron the West Brom of the Tory leadership race? David Davis is certainly the Norwich City, having gone down like a copy of the Morning Star after a lacklustre speech. David Cameron, after a storming Rob Earnshaw performance, is now the bookies’ favourite.
It’s up to Tory party members to make the choice, though their track record is not great. However, Cameron, for all his Eton-and-Oxford life, seems much more like a potential Blair figure than Davis, and doesn’t have the undying hatred of Tory party members to live with, unlike Ken Clarke.
So, is the Tory leadership race like the Premiership? Well:
- It goes on for ages
- It used to be very clubby and aristocratic, but is now much more glitzy
- There’s a lot of excitement as it builds to a climax
- It happens all over again next year.