Thread: as a former Conservative, I'm amazed at how little the Left seem to understand how to beat them. A few key insights based on how Conservatives really think.

Let's start with the easiest mistake.

Stop calling them evil. Whether they are or not, what you're doing is telling Conservative voters they're evil too. And you need to flip them.

Call then incompetent. That is what resonates. "Shower, shambles" etc. These are all good words.

People don't like paying tax. People are very happy for someone else to pay for public services but not them. The number of people who pay tax "for civilisation" is vanishingly small. Accept it.

Political parties exist to win elections. They're not a creche. Not some social club. They're a means to achieve power. That's it. The Tories know this in their bones.

Conservative politics is based on fear. You create a problem that doesn't exist, instill a sense of fear or anger and then explain only you have a solution. When Labour wins it does so from hope. Tories can't do hope.

The Tories are excellent at positioning their own interest as the national interest and presenting themselves as the reasonable choice. Big tent language kind of stuff and it works. Labour needs to do more of this.

Stop disowning Blair. He is the most successful centre-left PM in UK history. Get your head out of your wotsit and start copying his tactics, not rejecting them. Holier than thou leftism achieves zilch.

Your media operation needs to be high quality, professional and ruthless. Your low level social media ops needs to be friendly. Labour can do friendly. The Tories know they're in trouble here.

Tell me: Why do you think the Tories are going hard on their environmental and wildlife credentials? Because Vote Blue Go Green worked for Cameron. It's a detox strategy.

Attack them over Fox Hunting. Nail them to the wall over that manifesto pledge.

You mustn't let them put Ruth Davidson on view. She is terribly dangerous for you.

Drag it back to the Tories people hate. Keep the focus on the Boris Johnson's of this world. Tory 2.0 will beat Labour. Tory Whatto will crash and burn.

The Conservatives big worry at the moment is that they're becoming seen as the Brexit party.

Reinforce this. Keep saying, in relation to Brexit, "due to the Conservatives". They know how badly this is hurting them.

Keep the messages going to target the under-45s. Remind them that cuts, lack of housing, and Brexit are "due to the Conservatives". Remind them who failed to build homes.

The Conservatives means to attract young people are tax cuts. That's the idea behind stamp duty and the new railcard.

Give them the hope of owning their own home. Give them the hope of a good job. Where Tories reduce tax , you need to increase hope.

I cannot emphasise this enough.

Tories win by getting people to believe they will put their interests first.

Labour wins by getting people to believe in their vision for a better future.

Do not fear the tabloids. Their power is crumbling faster than anyone could've predicted and under 45s don't read them anyway.

You did brilliantly by owning social media. But go further.

You need a meme factory. Viral posts attacking the Tories, but don't cross the line.

You need a sensible economic policy. Let me explain.

1. Young people are less likely to believe in renationalisation than the elderly. It doesn't attract them.
2. Be like Mandelson. There is nothing immoral about being rich as long as people pay their taxes.

3. Make a big offer to business. With the Tories all at sea over Brexit and the cabinet in open warfare, *now* is the time for Labour to side with business over the EU.

4. Ask the IFS to audit your manifesto. The Tories will refuse to do the same and then you can hammer them with it.

5. When they steal ideas from your manifesto make a huge deal of it.

Refer to the Labour leader as the "Effective PM as opposed this ineffective government".

6. Steal their clothes: pledge to reintroduce the 10p tax rate, offset by a cancelling the planned reduction in corporation tax. They will panic.

Now onto their main weapon. Immigration. How do you counter it?

The Tories and the tabloids have worked hard to tell people their services are under pressure because of immigration.

The response is to highlight that it is cuts and the impact of an ageing population.

This isn't an easy sell.

But the line to take is

"Controlled immigration is of huge benefit to the UK"

What controlled means is up to you. The Tories say you want uncontrolled. Say no, but controlled is a huge benefit.

Oh and a reminder: which party created the single market and thus freedom of movement?

The Tories.