Navigating Tory twitter: who to follow this month
When new members of Blue Beyond join Twitter, I’m often asked who they should follow, who is tweeting from a non-London perspective and how to make sure your feed isn’t an echo chamber.
Whilst I am by no means an authority on Twitter, the party…or anything in my life it sometimes feels, I have – however - been able to notice a few Twitter accounts in the young 'Torysphere' that are worth paying attention to across the ever broadening church of the party.
Anyway, here’s my two cents:
1. Euan Blockley, Glasgow @euanblockley -
Right now, we need unionism more than ever. Drug related deaths in Scotland are three times higher than in Wales and England, NHS waiting lists continue to rise and the SNP’s continues to miss its own targets on cancer treatment, mental health and hospital building. Then there’s the deficit, which is six times higher than that of the United Kingdom – I know (!)
But, don’t worry folks, the SNP’s colossal incompetence at governing permeates local levels too and, as a Glasgow city councillor, Euan wastes no time in holding the SNP to account in council meetings and debates. Unlike his SNP colleagues, Euan is keen for the council to focus on issues affecting the communities of Glasgow that the council can make change on – be this local transport or health – rather than constantly discussing independence, which the SNP Glasgow cohort seem to have an insatiable appetite for.
Euan posts great videos of council sessions, where, often exhausted by the obtuse obsession with independence, he gives the SNP the scrutiny they deserve. Think Geoffrey Cox and Michael Gove, only younger, better looking, with more hair and more Scottish. Yes - you might get a few cybernats in your DMs when you retweet Euan, but it’s worth it.
Euan also often retweets key messages and talking points from the Scottish Conservatives as well as writing every now and again about the failures of the SNP, the benefits of the union to Scotland and the twists and turns of local politics in Glasgow.
2. Tom Hulme, East Midlands @tomhulme79
Recently crowning himself as the ‘original Tory princess’ following Pat Glass’ random attack on Dehenna Davison last week, Tom’s account is great to follow to get a snapshot into the left of the party. Tom has also tweeted frequently about the ever-present and increasing culture of anti-Semitism in the Labour Party, helped by the networks he has built across party lines.
Based in the East Mids, but hailing from Oldham, Tom is also able to give great commentary on the ‘leveling up’ dialogue we are currently seeing in politics. There are takes on regional transport, regional representation and – at least when she was elected – some fantastic criticism of Karen Lee.
Tom’s knowledge of parliamentary and political trivia is almost unrivalled so expect some niche but funny jokes if you’re a real politics nerd like me. There is also the odd reference to kitten heels too – don’t worry I’m not entirely sure what these are either but Tom’s very glam, so I presume they look good.
Tom is also refreshingly honest, open and candid about his own struggles with mental health. His ability to talk so freely about his health is also a great lesson for us all.
Tom is a member of Blue Beyond and the Tory Reform Group.
3. Guy Opperman MP, Hexham @GuyOpperman
Guy – if I can get away with first naming Mr Opperman MP without sounding like Stephen Canning (sorry Stephen) – is a dedicated, local and experienced MP, Guy has long understood the need for greater engagement beyond London. He engages with Young Conservatives regularly on Twitter and is switched on.
He’s the kind of MP that will eventually get back to you on a tweet and is genuinely interested in what his party members are thinking and saying.
He has also set up a new initiative called ‘Beyond the Bubble’ which we are very impressed with and hope that Guy will use his position to apply more pressure on the party to look beyond drinks events in the Palace of Westminster for YCs.
The podcast so far has been fantastic, hosting new MPs such as Jacob Young and is bringing politics to audiences new and old.
Aside from this, Guy is great on Twitter too. A particular highlight recently was when he took Pat Glass to task over her deranged trolling of Dehenna Davison. There was even a GIF and it allowed me to pull a painfully unfunny dad joke about his last name.
4. Amber Dunbar, Moray @amber_dunbar
Amber is extremely well deserved of this list. While no longer in her role as Scotland Lead, she is still fantastic. She is a staunch unionist activist based in Moray, dedicated campaigner and highly switched on with the political issues of the day.
With the propensity to focus solely on the failures of Nicola Sturgeon – something I am very guilty of – Amber often makes the positive case for the union in her tweets. From analyses of GERS to defence and economic benefits, it’s important to see what positives the union brings to both those south and north of the border.
Non-aligned in terms of internal political views, she is certainly more liberal in her leanings on social issues – and no, I’m not talking about Love Island as she has her non-political account to tweet about that stuff!
5. Dominique Samuels, York @dominiquetaegon
Dominique is a well-respected figure on the right of the party. Articulate, unapologetically passionate about her country and a proud Brexiteer; her account gives a good insight into what the social conservatives and tory right are thinking at the moment.
Based in Manchester, Dominique also tweets about issues affecting young people outside of London, as well as talking about what it’s like being BAME and a member of the Conservative Party.
She also took on Femi very convincingly recently on Channel 4 News and is well worth a watch - despite how irritating he can be (at least he didn’t keep calling her ‘Sir’ – which was extremely jarring to say the least in that radio tête-à-tête with Jack Powell last year).
Dominique has also made some great videos in the past, articulating her views on current affairs and topics of the day – it’s a refreshing, accessible and a great way to engage her audience. I hope that MPs, MSPs, AMs and MLAs will begin to employ similar methods in engaging people online.
Dominique is the President of the Orthodox Conservatives (or DoxCon).
Luke Robert Black