THE major task facing Brandon Lewis in getting Conservative Central Office shipshape was obvious for all to see when minutes before he went into Downing Street, Tory HQ wrongly announced Chris Grayling was to lead the charge to reform the party.
Conservative HQ tweeted its congratulations confirming Mr Grayling was to succeed Sir Patrick McLoughlin, whose head was widely expected to roll following the Tories’ terrible General Election performance. But within minutes the tweet had been deleted; thus confirming that one of the tasks facing the new party chairman is to vastly improve its social media operation.
Mr Lewis, previously the Immigration Minister, was elected to be MP for Great Yarmouth in 2010. He backed Remain in the EU referendum.
READ MORE: Brokenshire resigns as Northern Ireland Secretary ahead of major surgery
London born and bred, he studied economics and law at Buckingham University and became leader of Brentwood Council in Essex in 2002. After failing to win a seat in 2001, Mr Lewis was chosen to be the Tories' election candidate in Great Yarmouth in 2010, when he beat the sitting Labour MP Tony Wright.
His first step on the ministerial ladder came in 2012 when he was appointed a junior minister under Sir Eric Pickles at the Communities Department. Within two years he was promoted to become the Minister for Housing.
Under Theresa May, the Norfolk MP was first made Policing Minister at the Home Office and then Immigration Minister, who sometimes attends Cabinet when his portfolio is discussed. Under his tenure, and largely put down to the impact of Brexit, net migration has begun to fall. One of his last duties was to announce how post Brexit the British passport would change from burgundy to blue.
Popular among colleagues, the 46-year-old father-of-two will have to pick up the pieces of the party’s failed election campaign. He might not have much time if suggestions made by some pundits are true, that there might be another poll post Brexit in 2019.
One task he faces will be to ensure the Tories become a far more attractive proposition among young voters; Labour’s good performance last June was largely put down to its ability to win over millennials and first-time voters.
READ MORE: Brokenshire resigns as Northern Ireland Secretary ahead of major surgery
A key part of that will be to improve the party’s social media operation, which was seen as lagging well behind Labour in the election campaign.
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