Cameron needs to dance to his own tunes

The Week in Westminster has a debate between Danny Finkelstein and Alistair Campbell on how much the Tory party has changed under Cameron and if they are ready for power.  Campbell was at his bullying best constantly interrupting and talking over Finkelstein.  The debate achieved little not least because the chair, Steve Richards, used Campbell to push his own arguments forward about his doubts about Cameron.

Cameron has changed the Tory party and the evidence for this is that he is now taken seriously as the person who will probably became our next Prime Minister.  He has made two speeches recently setting about his agenda with more to come.  Rightly he will also come under increasing scrutiny as the election gets closer, not least because the media is bored with Brown.

Campbell is the wrong person for the media to use to attack the Tories.  He is not standing for election, neither does he hold any official position within the Labour party.  The media is just mesmerised by him.

Labour are clearly going to use Campbell in the media more and more as the election approaches.  Brown cannot depend on the current team to drive a highly negative campaign against the Tories and Cameron.  Plus Campbell provides a wonderful diversion from the economic mess that Brown is in.

If the Tories are not careful they will find themselves dancing to Labour’s tune, rather than focusing all their energies on setting out their own plans for Government and attacking Brown’s credibility.  In a way Osborne has already fallen to the the trap by his statement on the 45p tax rate.

Cameron needs to be careful, otherwise he is going to be sidetracked by the clever tactical traps that Brown, Mandy and Campbell will set for him.