Tory fantasists reveal plans to deal with threat of UKIP

Ten senior Tories have told ConservativeHome their fantastical ideas for dealing with the threat to their party from UKIP ... which of course doesn't exist according to David Cameron who told his party last month that UKIP are "a complete waste of time".

Angie Bray MP says they should repatriate powers from the EU whilst outgoing Corby MP Louise Mensch has this hilarious contribution:

Then the referendum should offer three choices. (Can you see UKIP's fox cowering in the corner? We're about to shoot it.) 1. Leave the EU altogether. 2. Demand new membership terms (as listed) and leave if we don't get them. 3. Remain as we are. Can anybody doubt a massive victory for point two?

I could make a comment about dogs hunting foxes but that would be rude.  Has anyone figured out yet why the SNP's referendum on Scottish Independence must have only In/Out and no "renegotiation" option because that's too unequivocal and confusing for voters but an EU referendum must have a "renegotiation" option?

Head of Progressive Conservatism Project, Max Wind-Cowie, says that the Tories aren't divided over "Europe" (he means the EU) and says that UKIP has "wildly opposed conservative and libertarian instincts".  An interesting choice of phrase considering the Conservatives are generally supposed to be ... well, conservative, as the name suggests.

Failed wannabe MP Dominic Schofield says they should renegotiate our relationship with the EU and fight UKIP on the ground with the message "vote purple, get red".

"Giving attention to self harmers merely
gives them justification for their abuse"

This might work with people who don't think the Tories are equally as bad as Labour and who are naive enough to think that voting for someone you don't want to stop someone else you don't want from winning is preferable to voting for the person you want.  Dominic Schofield's clearly doesn't think much of his prospective constituents.

Former Labour, now Tory, social media "expert" Luke Bozier says there should be no referendum on the EU and tax cuts will neutralise UKIP whilst Andrew Boff (Conservative London Assembly member) has this delightful comment:

Giving attention to self-harmers merely gives them justification for their abuse. We should offer a referendum (tomorrow, preferably) because it's the right thing to do, not because we want to deal with attention seekers.

Insulting 19,000 UKIP members and making light of mental health issues in the process.  We have one of the highest rates of self harming in Europe.  Way to go Mr Boff.

Tory-supporting "think tank" Centre for Policy Studies wonk, Ryan Bourne, says they should renegotiate our membership after the next election and David Nuttall MP, Chairman of the Better Off Out group of MPs and Peers, is the only one that has something vaguely sensible to say but still doesn't think we should have a referendum until after the next election.

Syed Kamall MEP says they should "show how UKIP never engage seriously in the European Parliament" whilst Tory researcher Paul Abbott displays a disturbing lack of understanding about the EU, talking about the European Court of Justice and Human Rights even though they're not actually EU institutions and claiming that last year's EU Act means that EU law only has primacy if Parliament wants it to despite it being a treaty obligation which is governed by international law.

It's pretty clear that the Tories refuse to listen to the majority of their membership or voters and that they hold the electorate in contempt.  It's amusing to see them simultaneously dismissing UKIP as being no threat and enough of a threat to have a masterplan for dealing with the UKIP threat to their party.