This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/feb/17/tory-twitter-lemmings-eastleigh-byelection
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Tory Twitter 'lemmings' backfire with Eastleigh byelection message | Tory Twitter 'lemmings' backfire with Eastleigh byelection message |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| After a bumpy start to their byelection campaign, which saw their candidate claim state schools were not good enough for her son, it appeared the Tory party was back "on message" with a vengeance in Eastleigh on Sunday. | After a bumpy start to their byelection campaign, which saw their candidate claim state schools were not good enough for her son, it appeared the Tory party was back "on message" with a vengeance in Eastleigh on Sunday. |
| A spate of statements from party activists and MPs, including Robert Halfon and Nadhim Zahawi, appeared on Twitter just before 2pm attacking the Liberal Democrats over housing policy. | A spate of statements from party activists and MPs, including Robert Halfon and Nadhim Zahawi, appeared on Twitter just before 2pm attacking the Liberal Democrats over housing policy. |
| Each tweet was identical – "The Lib Dem Eastleigh campaign in turmoil as Party's candidate admitted he 'voted for' 5,000 new houses on green spaces" – and the social networking site was soon abuzz with users claiming the episode was orchestrated from Tory central command and proof that some in the party were still struggling with the subtleties of campaigning in the digital age. | Each tweet was identical – "The Lib Dem Eastleigh campaign in turmoil as Party's candidate admitted he 'voted for' 5,000 new houses on green spaces" – and the social networking site was soon abuzz with users claiming the episode was orchestrated from Tory central command and proof that some in the party were still struggling with the subtleties of campaigning in the digital age. |
| Jim Waterson, a reporter with City AM tweeted: "Tory party press operation: it doesn't work if you get all your MPs to mysteriously tweet the same phrase." | |
| The Liberal Democrats said the incident revealed how out of touch the Conservatives' campaign had become. | |
| "The Tory Twitter lemmings are just showing how little the CCHQ spin machine actually knows about Eastleigh," said a spokesman. "By jeopardising plans to build vital homes, the Conservatives have put all of Eastleigh's green spaces at risk." | "The Tory Twitter lemmings are just showing how little the CCHQ spin machine actually knows about Eastleigh," said a spokesman. "By jeopardising plans to build vital homes, the Conservatives have put all of Eastleigh's green spaces at risk." |
| On Friday the Tory candidate, Maria Hutchings, drew widespread criticism after suggesting her son was too clever for local state schools. "William is very gifted, which gives us another interesting challenge in finding the right sort of education for him, impossible in the state system. He wants to be a cardio-respiratory surgeon." | On Friday the Tory candidate, Maria Hutchings, drew widespread criticism after suggesting her son was too clever for local state schools. "William is very gifted, which gives us another interesting challenge in finding the right sort of education for him, impossible in the state system. He wants to be a cardio-respiratory surgeon." |
| A Conservative party spokesman insisted the identical tweets were not an embarrassment but declined to say who was behind them. "It shows how engaged our MPs are in the campaign," he said. | A Conservative party spokesman insisted the identical tweets were not an embarrassment but declined to say who was behind them. "It shows how engaged our MPs are in the campaign," he said. |