Letters From A Tory Daily views on British politics and the Conservative Party from a centre-right thinker who writes letters on his blog to politicians, journalists and many others.

1. Samizdata thinks that the Damien Green affair is very good news.
2. Mark Wadsworth asks what’s £2.4 million between friends?
3. Liberal England discovers that carol singing presents a fire hazard.
4. Andrew Allison on why Mandelson should keep his hands off the economy.
5. A Tangled Web is getting confused by the Catholic church.

Dear Peter Mandelson,
On your return to ministerial office, I remember Gordon Brown eulogising about your time as EU Trade Commissioner.  He said that he needed “serious people for serious times” and commented on your ”unrivalled” experience in global trade.  Brown even said it was in the “national interest” to bring in people like yourself because you [...]

If you thought flicking a rubber band at a teacher was the best way of getting your own back, perhaps you could learn a thing or two from THIS BOY.

1. Newer Labour didn’t realise the BNP were so artistic.
2. Pub Philosopher finds that religious nutters have taken over Boots in West London.
3. Sharpe’s Opinion suspects that Alistair Darling has recently visited Nigeria.
4. Old Holborn on CCTV that can predict crime (allegedly).
5. Lord Elvis thinks that Gordon Brown needs to check where his priorities lie.

Dear John Harris,
Although it is not always easy to find a sensible and objective analysis of Labour policy on the Guardian website, you achieved this with the minimum of fuss in your Comment is Free article this morning.  Apart from political geeks like us, I suspect many people did not notice that on Tuesday this [...]

“It’s been reinforced to me in the last year that you can’t have volunteering unless it’s voluntary.”
- John Prescott, who has written a paper for the Prime Minister suggesting that all 16-25 year olds should do six to nine months of voluntary work within communities (yet another idea stolen from the Conservatives)

1. Ambush Predator is not going to be growing tomato plants anytime soon.
2. Tim Worstall likes pay cuts a lot, oh yes he does.
3. Obnoxio is almost as angry about the Sheffield abuse case as I am.
4. Curly now knows that going for lunch with a 7-year-old girl is dangerous.
5. Moments of Clarity wonders if [...]

Dear Nick Clegg,
In the chamber of comedy that was PMQs yesterday, it was you who took time to draw attention to the terrible plight of two sisters in Sheffield whose father was given 25 life sentences on Tuesday for raping and abusing them over a period of thirty years.  As with the case of Baby [...]

Get the latest news on the terrorist attacks from Reuters India.

1. Tony Sharp is bored of climate change mania.
2. Dizzy is surprised that the Ministry of Defence has got very bad defences.
3. Lib Dem Voice thinks Tessa Jowell should stop redecorating. 
4. Blue Eyes is just speculating, nothing more.
5. Unenlightened Commentary condemns the idiots who think cystic fibrosis is not ‘politically correct’.

Dear Sandrine Leveque,
After your disgracefully stereotyped attack on lapdancing clubs last month, someone thought it was appropriate to subject the House of Commons culture, media and sports select committee to the nonsense that you spout.  It is clear that you have no interest in being objective about lapdancing clubs or similar establishments, and the evidence [...]

“He is like some sherry-crazed old dowager who has lost the family silver at roulette, and who now decides to double up by betting the house as well. He is like a drunk who has woken to the most appalling hangover, and who reaches for the whisky bottle to help him dull the pain. And the [...]

Dear Tony Blair,
It has been an absolute delight to hear so little about you for so long.  Rumour has it that you are pretending to heal the wounds that you created in the Middle East away from the prying eyes of the media.  Anyone who commits himself to such a mission deserves support and I [...]

(taken yesterday on Tottenham Court Road in central London)
“We used to think that you could spend your way out of a recession and increase employment by cutting taxes and boosting government spending. I tell you in all candour that that option no longer exists.”
- James Callaghan, at the Labour Party conference in 1976

Dear Alistair Darling,
No no no no no, please god no.  The debate over the economic crisis has shifted enormously over the past 10 days or so.  The Conservatives have distanced themselves from the pre-budget report this afternoon, safe in the knowledge that you will announce short-term gains for long-term pains through massive hikes in borrowing.  [...]

Even though women are generally seen as the more emotional gender, I think this gender stereotype can be misleading.  There is now hard evidence that, once in a while, guys also need some extra support.

Dear Alan Johnson,
The economic crisis has pretty much wiped out any interest in health policy over the last six months.  This will have given you plenty of time to work on a possible election manifesto and really get to the bottom of some key issues facing hospitals and healtcare budgets across the UK.  Alas, you’ve gone [...]

“We shall watch Mr Darling on Monday to see whether he recognises that Labour’s gravity-defying economic behaviour has to stop. I am not hopeful. If he doesn’t cotton on, prepare to emigrate.”
- Simon Heffer in today’s Telegraph

Dear George Bush,
Finally, it has hit you - for the first time in eight years, you will be a ‘nobody’.  In a matter of weeks, you will be leaving the White House to be replaced by someone of a wholly different political mindset.  You could, of course, deal with this news in a mature, dignified and respectable [...]

Most people have been forced to experience the fairly cramped and uncomfortable conditions in Economy class on a transatlantic flight.  Thankfully, those days are at an end because today I can announce that if you want two seats to yourself for the whole journey without having to pay a penny extra, I have found a very simple [...]

Dear Chris Keates,
As leader of the NASUWT, one of the biggest teaching unions in the UK, I would have thought that you understood the importance of showing judgement and approaching topics with a certain level of common sense.  Unfortunately, you lack both judgement and common sense on the evidence of your comments today.  After the [...]

“Too many vulnerable children are still being let down by the system and we are failing to learn from the worst cases of abuse.” – Christine Gilbert, Ofsted’s chief inspector (19th November 2008)
“This is a tragic and serious loss of life that has got to be investigated properly so that all of the lessons can [...]

Dear Jonathan Freeland,
Your article on Comment is Free this morning has nicely captured some of the confusion that currently surrounds political life in the UK.  No-one is entirely sure what will happen for the rest of 2008, let alone 2009, but this uncertainty is breeding talk of an election next year.  For the last year [...]

You’ll be delighted to hear that the scum and vermin in the Houses of Parliament and government departments are finally being eradicated – sadly, this doesn’t include MPs.

Dear Ed Balls,
Since becoming Secretary of State, you have demonstrated your love of centralised control in education and children’s services beyond any reasonable doubt.  Removing the freedoms that City Academies enjoyed under Tony Blair is a good example of how you detest individual responsibility and independence from government.  Like Gordon Brown, your response to the [...]