On Thursday evening Diageo, the famous drinks manufacturer, kindly hosted a private event for my book Primed.
The event featured a conversation between myself and Damian Lyons Lowe, the Chief Executive of the reputable polling firm Survation.
We discussed the topics covered in my book and how they relate to the contemporary political landscape.
You can watch the full interview in the film below.
Damian asked, in one question, what the key message of the book was, to which my answer was that candidates should think about their positioning in relation to how voters are feeling about the party and its fortunes.
Do voters want continuity? Are they worried about division? Are they seeking change? Are they bored of the likely front runners?
Once a candidate has established what voters are thinking and feeling, it should then inform the narrative they use to communicate with the electorate.
I emphasised that this might sound like very basic advice, but that it was such an important principle and is one that is still sometimes seemingly overlooked.
Another question that I particularly enjoyed was when Damian asked me to think about the potential front-runners for the next Conservative Party leadership contest – which bookies suggest are Kemi Badenoch, Penny Mordaunt, Suella Braverman and James Cleverly – and identify the narrative archetype that each should adopt.
Primed is available from Amazon for £7.99 as a paperback, Kindle edition and as an audiobook.
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