Oxford University Conservative Association

Oxford University Conservative Association

File:OUCA1.jpg
Founded	1924
Patron	Baroness Thatcher, Somerville College
Honorary President	William Hague MP, Magdalen College
Dean	The Rev Father David Johnson, Selwyn College, Cambridge
Senior officers of the association, Trinity Term 2010
President	Natalie Shina, St Peter's College
President-Elect	Andrew Mason, University College
Treasurer	Christopher Adams, Brasenose College
Treasurer-Elect	Joe Cooke, Oriel College
Secretary	Henry Evans, Corpus Christi College
Political Officer	Maximilian Lewis-Shahzad, Pembroke College
Junior officers of the association, Trinity Term 2010
Publicity Officer	James Lawson, St. Edmund Hall
The Whip	David Blagbrough, Somerville College
Publications Officer	Peter Day-Milne, Trinity College
Social Secretary	Alexander Reut-Hobbs New College
Returning Officer	Robert Peters, Lady Margaret Hall
Home page	http: //www.ouca.org.uk/

The Oxford University Conservative Association, or OUCA (until recently it was the Oxford University Conservative Association, or OUCA for a short period) is a student political organisation founded in 1924 whose members are drawn from the University of Oxford. Betwenn October 2009 and May 28th, 2010, it was been disaffiliated from Oxford University by the proctors in response to allegations of racism, and was no longer be able to use the name "OUCA". The organization has now regained the University name.

Until October 2009, OUCA was a separate organisation not affiliated to the national Conservative Party or Conservative Future, the party's youth wing. However, as of 6 October 2009, it has been reported in the student press that the Association, with the backing of Conservative Campaign Headquarters, has opted to affiliate to the national Party and Conservative Future, and is now an official branch of the party.

Amongst the OUCA alumni are many significant Conservative Party figures, including former Prime Ministers and Cabinet Ministers. Three past Presidents currently serve in the Cabinet: William Hague, Jeremy Hunt, and Dominic Grieve and two others, the Home Secretary, Theresa May and Leader of the House of Commons Sir George Young served on the association's committee whilst undergraduates.

Past Presidents of OUCA also include Margaret Thatcher, Edward Heath, Jonathan Aitken, Lord Rees-Mogg, Daniel Hannan and Nick Robinson. Other prominent political figures known to be former OUCA committee members or officers include Ann Widdecombe, Ed Vaizey and the Earl of Dartmouth. (Ed Balls, a former Labour Party Cabinet minister, is also an OUCA alumnus, as well as former Labour Foreign Office Minister Chris Bryant.)

The Patron of the association is Margaret Thatcher and the Honorary President is William Hague.

Standing with the national Conservative Party

OUCA was, until recently, an independent organisation which was not part of the national Conservative Party or Conservative Future. Historically, relations between OUCA and the national party have been weak, for example OUCA (together with CUCA) were automatically treated as organisations separate to Conservative Future when it was founded in 1998, and after various unflattering stories in the national press, Conservative Party Central Office has traditionally been quick to distance itself from OUCA.

However, as of 6 October 2009, the Association officially voted to affiliate to the Conservative Party, and is now an official representative branch of Conservative Future. New members of the Association will now automatically become members of the Conservative Party and Conservative Future.

In March 2010, an Association event in support of the Oxford West parliamentary candidate, Nicola Blackwood was used to launch Conservative Future's national 'Time to Get Involved Campaign' and the association was praised by the party for its campaigning efforts

OUCA's prominent alumni and history leads to it having a high number of senior political figures speaking every term. Recently the OUCA has been visited by figures such as Margaret Thatcher (November 2002), John Major (April 2010), David Cameron (May 2008), George Osborne, Alan Duncan, John Redwood, Ann Widdecombe, the Earl of Onslow, Iain Duncan Smith (March 2008), David Willetts, Oliver Letwin, Jeremy Hunt, George Young, Charles Moore, Nigel Lawson and Lord Patten, and in 2006 it was praised in the Mail on Sunday by Lord Rees-Mogg.

OUCA members are often asked to stand for election to Oxford City Council. Most recently, Alex Stafford (President, Michaelmas 2007) stood for Holywell Ward in the 2008 Oxford City Council Election achieving an 8.2% swing for the Conservatives.

Committee

OUCA is run by its officers and committee, who are elected each term.

In addition, there is a Returning Officer, responsible for the elections and for administering OUCA's internal disciplinary procedures, and from time to time, there may also be appointed non-executive officers, such as a Press Officer.

OUCA Events

OUCA events and activities vary dramatically, depending on the President and committee. However, all activities broadly follow four main routes; Port and Policy, speaker meetings, campaigning and social events. Michaelmas Term is always the strongest term with more debates and speakers, as well as many socials, whilst Trinity Term leans more heavily on the social side due to exams.

Port and Policy

OUCA policy discussion has long been connected with high alcoholic consumption, as evidenced by OUCA's 1949 policy pamphlet whose sponsors were Harvey's sherry, G.T. Jones (wine merchants), Dry Fly sherry, Hankey Bannister whisky, James Brown wine and spirit merchants, and Usher’s Export Ale.

OUCA's most popular regular event is Port and Policy, where political discussion is helped along by fortified wine. Started in Trinity Term 1994, Port and Policy is usually held six times a term on Sunday evenings in the Oxford Union. Although the format is up to the President and the Political Officer, it generally follows the lines of a set debate to start with followed by a debate with topics from the floor. This is all done in a relaxed environment with unlimited amounts of port. In May 2007 OUCA's port and Policy featured in a documentary produced for Channel 4 titled Make Me a Tory. In recent terms Port and Policy has been sponsored by The Spectator, who provide numerous complimentary copies of their publication, and Dow's Port who provide discounted Port. The growth in attendance at Port and Policy was recently featured in the Financial Times as evidence of growing popularity for the Conservatives among students.

Speaker Meetings

One of OUCA's most high profile elements is its speaker meetings. Recently OUCA has been visited by figures such as Margaret Thatcher (November 2002), John Major (April 2010), David Cameron (May 2008), Michael Howard (February 2007 and June 2008) , Michael Ancram, Edward Leigh , George Osborne, Alan Duncan, John Redwood, Ann Widdecombe, the Earl of Onslow, Iain Duncan Smith, David Willetts, Oliver Letwin and Lord Patten.

The President of the Association is responsible for inviting guest speakers and organising his term's events. The prestige of the Association means that it often draws prominent conservative figures from various walks of life.

Campaigning

OUCA often campaigns in local and general elections in other constituencies.

Over the last few years, this aspect of the Association's activities has been resurgent, and its success rate has dramatically increased, as demonstrated by an ever-increasing demand by Conservative M.P.s and councillors for OUCA's assistance in their constituencies and wards. The Association aided the Conservative candidate in the Headington Hill and Northway ward of Oxford in Trinity Term 2006 and sitting councillors in Swindon in Michaelmas Term of that year. In Hilary Term 2007 a group from OUCA aided in the local elections in the Ribble Valley, where the Conservatives took control on a large swing. For this, and their work in the Tooting area, [[Mark Clarke thanked OUCA.

Both The Times and The Oxford Student reported OUCA's 2004 campaigning tour of southern England, led by then President Oliver Pepys (Oriel). The stories centred on the fact that the group stayed with married Tory MPs Virginia and Peter Bottomley, and woke them up in the early hours of the morning by singing Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe under their bedroom window.

Social events

Politics aside, OUCA's social events have always been extremely popular. Although the arrangements are left to the discretion of the President and the Social Secretary, they usually include a party, a garden party in Trinity term, and trips to London to visit Parliament, the theatre or gentlemans' clubs. In Trinity term there are occasionally sporting fixtures against the Oxford Union and Cambridge University Conservative Association.

From time to the time the association also hosts events with Conservative think tanks and pressure groups, recently including the Freedom Association, the Army Benevolent Fund and the Adam Smith Institute.

Dissolution and Merger of the Oxford University Tory Reform Group

In 1965 a group of OUCA members formed the Oxford University Tory Reform Group, predating the national Tory Reform Group organisation. The OUTRG acted as a One Nation Conservative pressure group in Oxford, although had a substantially smaller membership than OUCA. However due to decline in interest, the national Party's shift towards a more moderate conservatism, and the decline of faction in OUCA the OUTRG voted to disband and merge with OUCA during Michaelmas term 2007.

In an email to OUTRG members, its President Luke Connoly reported that an extraordiniary general meeting held at the Lamb and Flag public house at 3pm on 18 November 2008 unanimously voted to dissolve the OUTRG as of midday Saturday 8th week (1 December 2007) and to merge with OUCA. He cited falling attendance and a belief that OUCA had "genuinely become more liberal". He added that "Being a broad political society as it is, and containing all wings of conservative political thought as it does, there will always be OUCA members to the ‘right’ of the political spectrum, but there will also always be OUCA members on the TRG side of the political spectrum. Being as they will be now within one organisation, it will make debate between wings of the party much easier and more productive."

Later in the year, Douglas Hurd, a patron of the national TRG move lamented the disbanding of the Oxford Branch, saying that "Is very important that the One Nation view is powerfully represented."<

OUCA in the Media

OUCA has often featured in the student, local, and national media.

2010

Sir John Major visit

In Trinity Term 2010 just over a week before the 2010 General Election, the Oxford Mail reported John Major's visit to the association. The Daily Mail newspaper subsequently reported the event and criticised the Oxford Student newspaper for their 'anti-Tory' coverage.

2009

Racist jokes at hustings

Ahead of the termly elections in Trinity Term 2009 it was reported in student, local, and national newspapers that two candidates in the OUCA elections had made racist comments at hustings in response to the question "What is the most inappropriate joke you have ever told?" The society's incumbent Publications Officer Nick Gallagher was widely reported as saying "What do you say when you see a television moving around in the dark? Put it down, you nigger, or I'll shoot you" which caused uproar at the meeting, while according to an OUCA member present, "Another [candidate] made a joke about a black family of three getting lynched. Nobody booed." OUCA President Anthony Boutall said he did not hear any racist remarks and commented "I cannot reiterate strongly enough that OUCA has no place for racism, and abhors and rejects all racial prejudice.", but an OUCA member at the hustings was quoted as saying the remarks were "tongue in cheek, ironic would be the word for it...More banter than anything else", while another explained "It is somewhat of an OUCA tradition to ask two or three slightly outrageous questions...Everyone who's there expects certain things to go on. It's all in good spirits." In his defence, Gallagher stated in a subsequent interview that the incident had been misreported. He asserted "I never delivered the punchline", and that instead, several people in the audience who already knew the joke shouted the punchline back at him after he told the first line of the joke. He further defended his behaviour on the grounds that he believed it "is traditional at OUCA hustings to tell a racist or offensive joke."

These jokes were condemned by the Oxford University Student Union, and before an OUCA disciplinary committee had convened, the two members who had made the remarks were suspended from the national Conservative Party. Former Conservative leader Michael Howard then pulled out of a subsequent OUCA speaker event, reportedly in disgust at the remarks.

The university proctors launched an investigation into the incident, and released a statement noting "We learned in the course of the evidence collection that the conduct displayed at the hustings in 2009 was not atypical of earlier behaviour at association events." As subsequently reported in the The Daily Mail, The Times, and The Daily Mirror in response to these allegations the university proctors formally de-registered the society from Oxford University, which the Oxford Mail described as "effectively washing its hands of the association indefinitely." In practice, this debarred the society from being able to use the words "Oxford University" in its name for at least two terms, or from booking a stall at the 2009 Freshers' Fair.

The press and the University's response was subsequently criticised for misrepresenting events and blaming the association for the mistakes of a minority of individuals .

It was subsequently reported that although the newly-established Oxford University Bow Group had distributed some Conservative literature at the 2009 Freshers' Fair, they categorically distanced themselves from OCA, displaying on their stall a copy of Cherwell with the headline "Tories back disgraced Oxford Conservatives" across which they had scrawled "not us", and holding up a placard reading "We are conservatives with nothing to do with OUCA" Subscript: (except losing in its elections)."

2008

Accusations of "Sexism" over poster

In Michaelmas 2008, the society was accused of sexism for a recruitment poster at a fresher's fair, of an attractive young woman under the slogan "Life's better under a Conservative". Student paper Cherwell quoted OUSU's Vice-President Rachel Cummings as saying "It's disappointing that OUCA use female sexuality to publicise themselves. It undermines the significant impact women have had on the Conservative movement and politics more widely; because of their intelligence and competence, not their attractiveness", while Henny Ziai, Treasurer of Oxford's Liberal Democrats, remarked "I was shocked that OUCA, as supposed representatives of David Cameron's new and progressive Conservative Party, would attempt to use sex to sell conservatism and, in doing so, would so unashamedly promote and help perpetuate the sexual objectification of women." But OUCA alumnus and Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe commented "What a load of politically correct nonsense. I might find the joke coarse, but I don't find it sexist." A Cherwell oped argued that the poster was "sexist", but not "offensive".

2007

Expulsion over Nazi salute

In May 2007, Cherwell reported that OUCA member Arthur Alekseev was expelled from the association after giving a Nazi salute to former Conservative MP Gyles Brandreth, during a Port and Policy event. The incident was reported in The Times, although Brandreth said that he did not see the salute.

"Make me a Tory"

A Channel 4 documentary entitled "Make me a Tory" aired on Sunday May 13th 2007 and produced by Daniel Cormack included footage from one of OUCA's Port and Policy meetings. The programme also included an interview with party leaderDavid Cameron and was described by its promotional material as 'an accessible and genuinely revealing look at the political movers and shakers who form the future of the Conservative party'

2006

Police investigation - allegations of electoral malpractice

OUCA President-Elect Charlie Steel was the subject of a police investigation amidst allegations of forging signatures on his nomination form for the May 2006 council elections, in which he was a candidate. This followed complaints to the police from two of the people nominating Steel on the forms, who insisted that they had never signed them. The issue received national coverage in The Times. When Steel refused to resign as President-Elect, OUCA's President, Treasurer, Treasurer-Elect, Secretary, and Political Officer all resigned in protest. As Steel was President-Elect when OUCA's President Simon Clarke resigned (see below), Steel became Acting President under the rules of the constitution, and continued as Acting President for the remaining five weeks of Clarke's term, until serving his own full term as President the following Michaelmas. OUCA's former Treasurer admitted during the saga that OUCA had become "the joke of Conservative central office." In the local elections, Steel came third, and polled 13%..

Signature forgery on financial document

During the police investigation into allegations that Charlie Steel had forged signatures, (see above), "The Oxford Student" reported that OUCA President Simon Clarke had admitted"that he forged the signature of ex-President Alexander Samuels on a bank mandate, which he presented to Lloyds TSB on Friday 10th February [2004]. The form authorised the removal of Samuels as a signatory for the OUCA bank account, and also authorised Clarke’s addition to the signatories." Clarke denied that this made his position untenable, and no action was taken after he apologised. A week later, he and four other committee members resigned, citing "no confidence" in Charlie Steel over the allegations that Steel had forged signatures.

2001

'Hitler Youth' remark

It was reported in both the local press and the New Statesman that OUCA activists at the 2001 Fresher's Fair boasted to potential recruits that the society was "the biggest political group for young people since the Hitler Youth.",.

2000

Offensive Nazi demonstration

In 2000, four members of OUCA were expelled from a meeting of Oxford University Student Union for what The Oxford Student described as "a deliberate disruption of proceedings, involving Nazi-style salutes, cries of "Viva Pinochet" and alleged drunken behaviour".

1999

Will Goodhand/Christine Hamilton - Drunken dinner

In Trinty Term 1999, one of OUCA's junior officers, Will Goodhand, was photographed kissing Christine Hamilton during a drinking session which followed the OUCA termly dinner at which she and her husband, former Conservative MP Neil Hamilton, had been guests. The photograph appeared on the front-page of The Sun. According to The Oxford Student, "several guests at the dinner reported that Neil Hamilton's speech was peppered with racist and sexist remarks, explicitly referring to "the natives from Ungabunga land."" The same report quoted one guest as saying, "I left with a real sense it was all incredibly distasteful and utter shock to realise that OUCA was actually as sordid as I always thought it had been" while another guest likened the after-party to an "orgy." A week after the incident made the national newspapers, the Hamiltons appeared on The Big Breakfast and Goodhand was a 'surprise' guest, and 're-enacted' his kiss with Christine Hamilton for the cameras, which was much toned down into an embrace this time. The Oxford Student later reported a reconciliation between Goodhand and the Hamiltons on a return visit, with Goodhand sharing a car with them. He commented: "I took a lift with Neil and Christine Hamilton, but I'd like to make it clear this is the only ride I've had with Christine."

Electoral malpractice and abuse of Union staff

At the start of that term, action had been taken against several members for electoral malpractice. This was after several members ran off with the ballot box during the society's termly elections. It was reported that the ballot box had been stored in a pub next to the Oxford Union "as the society had been banned from using Union facilities for what one Union source described as "systematic unruly behaviour" involving alleged rude behaviour with Union staff and late payment of bills."

1989

Strippers, and convicted rapist

In Trinity Term 2005, a Cherwell oped article referred to OUCA as "...inviting strippers to perform “lewd acts” in 1989". In 2009, the Daily Mail elaborated on this incident in reporting that OUCA's then-Social Secretary Sally Illman (future wife of Conservative MP John Bercow) had been "cavorting with a stripper as he performed in front of Young Conservatives. What she couldn’t have known when she hopped up on stage to join ‘Terry The Minder’ was that he would later become infamous as the Black Cab rapist John Worboys", dubbed by the paper as "Britain's most notorious rapist." The Mail elaborated that "The Association booked the strippers for a £3.50-a-head event in the Baring Room at Hertford College" and quoted the then-Dean of Hertford College as saying it would be "a long time before the Conservative Association get to use that hall again", while university officials removed OUCA's right to use the prefix "Oxford University" for a while. A ban on OUCA holding events at Hertford College still stands to this day.

1981

William Hague - Electoral malpractice

In Trinity Term 1999, The Oxford Student reported that when William Hague had been President of OUCA in 1981, he had been "convicted of electoral malpractice" and that on a subsequent visit to the Association in the 1990s, he was recorded to have said: "It is not the election that one needs to worry about...it's more the tribunal thereafter.' "

1951-2

Breakaway group

Julian Critchley described OUCA on his arrival at Pembroke in 1951 – despite its 2,000 members, "It was dominated by a patrician clique who preserved their power by preventing the membership at large from electing officers of the Association. These were chosen by the Committee which, although directly elected, was easily open to manipulation." – Critchley and Michael Heseltine, defeated in their bids for OUCA office, set up a rival Conservative society, the Blue Ribbon Club.

Recurring allegations of "Vote-buying"

OUCA has been repeatedly hit by allegations of widespread 'vote-buying' - the practice of potential candidates signing up dozens of friends as members, to vote for them in forthcoming elections. This involves a substantial financial outlay, as the friends' membership needs to be paid for. Membership costs £15 each, and at least several dozen votes are required to win an election. This has, consequently, resulted in a large membership and a very high income for the society. In 1999, Robin Conway, a former member of OUCA's governing body, commented "I happen to know that the practice of buying votes is widespread and that when you go in you are encouraged to buy votes and told you'll never get on without doing so." This was reported as recently as March 2009, when an OUCA member told Cherwell that "it was widespread for candidates to buy memberships for their friends just before the elections so they could vote for them. "Everybody knows it goes on," he said while another member stated "it's what candidates tend to do."

Recent Presidents

For a complete list of Presidents dating back to 1924, see Former Presidents of Oxford University Conservative Association

Year	Term	President	College
2009	Hilary	Niall Gallagher	Worcester College
2009	Trinity	Anthony Boutall	St Edmund Hall
2009	Michaelmas	Alexander Elias	Pembroke College
2010	Hilary	Oliver Harvey	Christ Church
2010	Trinity	Natalie Shina	St. Peter's College
2010	Michaelmas	Andrew Mason	University College

See also

• Cambridge University Conservative Association
• UCL Conservative Society

Notes

1. Oxford Student: OUCA PMs to judge Gardener? (Trinity Term 2003)
2. Oxford Student: Oxford Tories wake up Bottomley (Hilary Term 2003)
3. Oxford Student: OUCA President survives by single vote (Hilary Term 2005)
4. Oxford Student: OUCA treasurer stripped of office (Hilary Term 2006)

General references

• Anthony Berry and Douglas Wilson (eds.) with a foreword by the Rt. Hon. Anthony Eden, Conservative Oxford (Oxford University Conservative Association, Oxford, 1949) OCLC: 67886997
• Martin Ceadel, "The 'King and Country' Debate, 1933: Student Politics, Pacifism and the Dictators The Historical Journal, Vol. 22, No. 2 (Jun., 1979), pp. 397–422 Jstor link

External links

• Official website