Difficult times

I am no fan of Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) but during one of his endless television interviews yesterday he did make a good point. He said that the Conservative Party was not in touch with their traditional voters. And he is right, to a point. Prime Minister David Cameron has sought to modernise his party and has placed more emphasis on issues such as gay marriage and environmental policies. As a direct result some of the party´s more traditional voters appear to have jumped ship to UKIP which campaigns on the two issues which are close to the heart of many voters: immigration and Europe. But I sincerely hope that Cameron doesn´t alter tack and change his policies to beat off UKIP and curry favour with the few dinosaurs which sit on the bank benches. Europe has also been an issue which has divided the Conservative Party. Cameron was right to offer a referendum on European Union membership but he should stick to his guns on other policies. Coming third in a by-election won by the junior coalition partner was not a disaster for the Tories; infact it was a good night for the coalition because it showed that the Liberal Democrats still have considerable support and can still win. The Eastleigh by-election victory will have taken the pressure off leader Nick Clegg which in some ways is good news for Cameron. At one stage it had appeared that the Liberal Democrats were in meltdown and could bring down the coalition as well.