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Tories aim for northern England Conservatives eye northern votes
(30 minutes later)
The Conservatives have formed a campaign group to get in touch with voters in northern England. David Cameron has set up a group to boost support for the Conservatives in northern England, where the party's fortunes have dwindled in recent years.
Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague will be chairman of the Northern Board and principal spokesman for the party in the area. The Tory leader said they could not hope to form a government unless they represented people across Britain.
Party leader David Cameron said the group was established to tackle "our underperformance" in the North. "In 1970 we won 62 seats in the North. Today we hold 19. We cannot turn this situation around overnight," he said.
"We can never aspire to office unless we represent communities in every part of Britain," he said. Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague, MP for Richmond in North Yorkshire, will head up the Northern Board.
The party said it has nine MPs, six MEPs, 1,362 councillors and the control of 18 councils in the north of England. Party chairman Francis Maude said support for the Conservatives in the North had been "flat-lining for too long."
We must do so on the ground in communities across the North David CameronConservative leader The party says it will be the first time it has organised itself to ensure the region has a place at the heart of policy-making and campaigning.
Mr Cameron said it was not possible to turn around the Tories' low success in the North overnight. Where the party died away somewhat at grass roots level in, say, the 1990s, then we lost the councillors and lost touch with people at a local level William Hague
"We cannot do so from London. Instead, we must do so on the ground in communities across the North." "I think we've neglected our organisation actually over previous decades," Mr Hague told BBC Radio Five Live.
Mr Hague said the Northern Board would "lead the revival of the Conservative Party in the North." "Where we haven't done that, in cities like Leeds and Bradford, Conservatives are in leading positions.
'Flat-lining' "Where the party died away somewhat at grass roots level in, say, the 1990s, then we lost the councillors and lost touch with people at a local level and then it makes it harder to win the parliamentary seats as well and that's the sort of thing we're now putting right".
The Conservatives have 19 MPs, six MEPs, 1,362 councillors and the control of 18 councils in the north of England.
But Mr Cameron said changing their fortunes in the region could not be done overnight, and it could not be done from London.
"Instead, we must do so on the ground in communities across the North," he said.
Activists in the North-West, North-East and Yorkshire and the Humber will get "greater autonomy" in organising and campaigning.Activists in the North-West, North-East and Yorkshire and the Humber will get "greater autonomy" in organising and campaigning.
"Each region will have real responsibility for building campaigns, membership and driving fundraising," Mr Hague said.
Francis Maude, Conservative Party chairman, described the support for Tories in the North as "flat-lining for too long."
"The creation of campaign centres and the appointment of shadow ministers for the major northern cities were steps in the right direction to address this," he said.
As part of its role, the Northern Board will propose new ways of promoting the party regionally and locally, and support selected parliamentary candidates.As part of its role, the Northern Board will propose new ways of promoting the party regionally and locally, and support selected parliamentary candidates.