 | |
Type of site | Blog |
|---|---|
| Created by | Tim Montgomerie |
| Editor | Giles Dilnot |
| CEO | Angus Parsad-Wyatt |
| URL | conservativehome |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Launched | 2005 |
| Current status | Active |
ConservativeHome is a politicallyconservative news website and events company. It was first established byTim Montgomerie in 2005 with the aim of arguing for a broadconservative spectrum, which is serious about bothsocial justice and a faircompetitive economy.[1] A second aim of the blog is to represent grassrootsConservatives,[2][3][4] and is independent of, but supportive of, theConservative Party.
ConservativeHome was first edited by Tim Montgomerie, prior to the2005 United Kingdom general election campaign.[5] In November 2008, Jonathan Isaby joined as a co-editor.[6] In 2009,Paul Goodman – the former Conservative MP forWycombe – became the executive editor of ConservativeHome.[7]
In February 2013, Montgomerie announced that he would leave the site in April of the same year to become comment editor ofThe Times.[8] Goodman succeeded him as editor, andMark Wallace joined the site as executive editor in May 2013. In January 2020 it was announced that Wallace would become the website's Chief Executive.
In 2022, Wallace became Chief Executive ofTotal Politics Group, owner of ConservativeHome, with Angus Parsad-Wyatt succeeding him as Chief Executive of ConservativeHome.
In 2024, following Paul Goodman's appointment to the House of Lords,Giles Dilnot was appointed editor of ConservativeHome.
The site took a leading role in co-ordinating grassroots support in opposingMichael Howard's attempt to abolish the "one man one vote" rule in the2005 Conservative Party leadership election.[9]
ConservativeHome was critical of theA list and believed that former Conservative Party Leader David Cameron was in danger of alienating working class Conservative voters,[10][11][12] and pressed Cameron for specific pledges on tax cuts.[13]
It was credited with the most accurate record of MP affiliation during the2005 Conservative Leadership election, and it also was the first to reveal the names on the "A-list" of candidates.[14][15] The Conservative chairmanFrancis Maude described it during the leadership election as "the only place to find out what's going on".[9]
"A Lefty Lexicon", a satirical article published in August 2006 on the site and written by Inigo Wilson, a man described as someone who "manages community affairs for a large telecoms company",[16] was criticised by theMuslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK).[citation needed] MPAC members discovered that Wilson was Community Affairs Manager for phone companyOrange, and pressured the company to dismiss him. Wilson was initially suspended for the comments,[17] but later reinstated.[18]
In February 2012, ConservativeHome called forAndrew Lansley to be replaced asHealth Secretary and for theHealth and Social Care Bill to be abandoned.[19]
The site supported aLeave vote in the2016 EU referendum.[20]
The site previously ran a fortnightly podcast with Conservative MPJacob Rees-Mogg called "The Moggcast".[21]
In September 2009Lord Ashcroft, the then-Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party, took a controlling stake of 57.5% in PoliticsHome, the politically-neutral sister-site to ConservativeHome.[22] In 2011, Ashcroft sold PoliticsHome toDod's Group, which he co-owns, and retained ConservativeHome.
In 2017, the website stated that it gets over two million unique visitors a year.[23]
In 2010, ConservativeHome launched an American site,ConservativeHomeUSA, which is edited byRyan Streeter and Montgomerie. Contributors includedJohn Thune,Roger Bate,Herbert London,David Frum and many otherRepublican and conservative think-tank and media figures. On 17 May 2012 the site announced its closure.[24]
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