Cameron takes on Australian poll guru

 
By George Parker, Political Editor

 
David Cameron has hired the Australian poll guru Lynton Crosby to mastermind the next Tory election campaign, ignoring the misgivings of some advisers and prompting Labour claims that he is swinging to the right.
 
Mr Cameron’s choice is highly controversial, given Mr Crosby’s association with Michael Howard’s 2005 “dog whistle” Tory campaign, with its strident rightwing tone on issues including immigration, crime and Europe.

 
But modernisers, including George Osborne, the chancellor, believe that Mr Crosby will deliver the message he is given by his political masters and that his electioneering skills and organisational clout are vital to help the Tories win from the centre.
 
The appointment represents a delicate balancing act, immediately thrown into stark relief by allegations in the Mail on Sunday newspaper that Mr Crosby used the phrase “f****** Muslims” while running Boris Johnson’s successful mayoral campaign in London.

A spokesman said Mr Crosby had “no recollection” of using such a remark and that it was “mischievous to suggest Lynton is racist in any way”, pointing out that Mr Johnson’s campaign had fought vigorously for the Muslim vote.
 
But Labour called for an investigation into the alleged remarks. Michael Dugher, Labour’s vice-chair, said: “Appointing the arch rightwinger who ran the Tories 2005 election campaign shows once again that David Cameron can’t be the ‘one nation’ prime minister Britain needs.”
 
Some of Mr Cameron’s inner circle also fear that Mr Crosby comes with too much “baggage” and that it is no coincidence that many of his campaigns have focused visceral political issues such as immigration that may turn off some floating voters.
 
Lord Ashcroft, who ran the Tory marginal seats campaigns at the 2010 election, has said it would be a “mistake” to appoint Mr Crosby because he was not needed and would become “a distracting influence”.
 
But Mr Cameron, encouraged by Mr Osborne and Mr Johnson, has decided to give Mr Crosby control of planning the next Tory campaign, starting with a part-time post next year that is likely to become full-time as the poll approaches.
 
Those who know Mr Crosby refused to confirm or deny reports that the deal with his CTF partners was worth £200,000 a year. Tory insiders said Mr Crosby would spend about one week a month working on the party’s campaign.
 
Those who know Mr Crosby insist he does not have his own agenda but simply delivers for clients. For example, they say he was helping one set of clients campaign for an expansion of Heathrow while simultaneously helping Mr Johnson oppose the idea in his mayoral campaign.
 
Mr Crosby’s appointment is a recognition that the Tories cannot repeat the organisational fiasco of the 2010 campaign, when Steve Hilton, Mr Cameron’s policy chief, clashed repeatedly with Mr Osborne, the campaign manager, and Andy Coulson, the party’s former media chief.
 
Mr Hilton’s desire to promote “fluffier” concepts such as the Big Society, the green agenda and localism was at odds with the ideas of Mr Osborne and Mr Hilton, who wanted a grittier message.

Already Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne are distancing themselves from the Hilton agenda, but both men are determined to prove to their rightwing critics that the Tories – with the right campaign – can still win from the centre.
 
While wind farms and the Big Society are out, Mr Osborne last week insisted that a socially liberal agenda on issues such as abortion and gay marriage was still part of the mix.
 
Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne believe that President Barack Obama’s US election victory this month was proof of the need to stick to the centre ground. Aspiration will be at the heart of the Tory campaign, alongside the economy.
 
“I believe that elections are won in the common ground – the centre ground – that is where you need to be, arguing about the things that matter to most people,” Mr Cameron said.
 
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2012