Lord Ashcroft Polls

By Lord Ashcroft

Since 2001 our Armed Forces have been more in the public eye than at any time since the Second World War. As we mark thirty years since the Falklands’ liberation, and thousands of personnel face the prospect of redundancy, it is a good time to take stock of our relationship with the Forces and the men and women who serve in them.

General Sir David Richards, Chief of the Defence Staff, has kindly allowed me to conduct the biggest ever independent research project among military personnel. We also spoke to veterans, employers, American Service personnel, and the general public in Britain and the US.

(more…)

By Lord Ashcroft

David Cameron has said the midterm blues and tough economic conditions are not enough to explain last week’s results, and that he will not take refuge in the familiar excuses. This is good to hear, though he probably does take some comfort in the fact that bad local elections are hardly a shock for a mid-term government. Nevertheless, it is worth making some observations about what happened.

Some claim core Conservatives stayed at home or voted for someone else. Yet the figure of 31%, the party’s vote share last Thursday, has a familiar ring to it. This may be because 31% was the party’s average score in published polls between 1997 and 2005. That suggests to me not that core Tories did not vote Conservative last Thursday, but that they were the only ones who did.

(more…)

By Lord Ashcroft

The main purpose of this website is to set out the findings of my research in a way that readers will find clear and easy to digest. I know, however, that many people still prefer to reach for a volume from their shelves. For them, I have published It’s Not You, It’s Them, a collection of my political work since the 2010 general election.

The subtitle of the book – Research To Remind Politicians What Matters – sums up what I try to achieve with my polling. In my experience, people in politics are usually well motivated and want to serve. But they often find it hard to appreciate one important point: the mere fact that politics occupies much of their attention makes them different from (without wishing to offend anyone) normal people.

(more…)