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They say a week is a long time in politics but frankly it feels at the moment as if a day is a long time.<\/p>\n
February\u2019s drama has included eight Labour MPs leave the party to become part of the Independent Group, followed by three Conservatives doing the same. The political world has been awash with speculation about more names and those with long memories have been looking back to 1981 and the breakaway that led to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).<\/p>\n
So now we have a group (not yet a party) with a website, some social media and lots of coverage.<\/p>\n
The SDP had a relatively lengthy period of high profile semi adulatory attention.\u00a0 Time spans are shorter these days as communications have speeded up, and the Independent Group may find the honeymoon period is more like a mini break.<\/p>\n
As they approach the danger period of scrutiny and uncertainty, what do they need to do?<\/p>\n
1 Get a leader:<\/strong> The SDP had a collective leadership for a while \u2013 the so called Gang of Four.\u00a0 And the Green Party currently has a joint leadership.\u00a0 Normally though parties need an identified single leader.\u00a0 It helps provide an obvious person for the media.\u00a0 And it helps avoid the sort of split stories when a collective leadership accidentally contradicts each other.<\/p>\n Of course it is easy for me to say this, but choosing a leader is not that easy.\u00a0 The first issue\u00a0 is who should choose?\u00a0 The MPs on their own?\u00a0 A wider supporter base?\u00a0\u00a0 The second issue is the need to be seen not to lean in either\u00a0 a Labour or a Conservative direction.\u00a0 And remember, we are dealing with MPs from two different traditions.<\/p>\n 2 Think about the name:<\/strong> While the Independent Group is useful in the short term for making a Parliamentary point, in the long term it risks being confused with people who are just, well, independent.\u00a0 As someone who sat through the rows about the Liberal Democrats and their name (at one point the name Democrats was being tried) I know this is not as easy as it sounds.\u00a0 But it does need thought.<\/p>\n 3 Decide whether you are a party or a movement:\u00a0<\/strong>If you are a party you need to register, which in turn means having a name and a strapline and a logo.\u00a0 To run candidates in elections with anything on the ballot other than the one word independent you need to register with the Electoral Commission.\u00a0 Even the phrase The Independent Group wouldn\u2019t be allowed.\u00a0 This is why individuals who stand as independents for Mayoral positions often register a shell party in order to stand out a bit.\u00a0 Try not to be tempted thought to answer journalists questions with detailed suggestions about party formation.\u00a0 This non glamorous side of politics is littered with technical problems and you don\u2019t want to end up suggesting the impossible.<\/p>\n 4 Publish a few more basic policy themes:<\/strong> But don\u2019t be tempted to write huge amounts of detail.\u00a0 People want to get a sense of your general direction and perhaps some examples of your attitudes on current issues.\u00a0 You don\u2019t need the sort of policy heavy prospectus that some national parties have.<\/p>\n 5 Think about post Brexit:<\/strong> So far you have made it clear that you want a second referendum or People\u2019s Vote on Brexit.\u00a0 This might not happen. We may leave at the end of March. You need to know what you will be saying if Brexit happens on the day Theresa May says it will.\u00a0 A People\u2019s Vote is only a short term policy.<\/p>\n 6 Finally, work out what you will do if you disagree on a Parliamentary Vote:<\/strong> There may be times in the near future when your members want to vote different ways.\u00a0 Will you try to enforce discipline (with all the old politics vibes this creates) or will you be more relaxed?\u00a0 You can be sure that some parties will try to create situations which could cause split voting.\u00a0 Whatever happens you need to know what you are saying about this.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" They say a week is a long time in politics but frankly it feels at the moment as if a day is a long time. February\u2019s drama has included eight Labour MPs leave the party to become part of the Independent Group, followed by three Conservatives doing the same. The political world has been awash […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1269,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1688],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-942","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\n