Following the launch of the Conservatives new “Gordon’s done sweet BA” poster campaign, which is aimed at highlighting Labour’s links with the Unite union, a poster van was dispatched by CCHQ to Heathrow.

Alas union thugs didn’t like the message and set about attacking the poster and ripping it to shreds.

A Channel 4 News camera caught the aftermath:

Following his speech this morning in which he invoked the spirit of Margaret Thatcher, David Cameron has now released the following video:

The Conservatives have today launched a new online campaign using Facebook Connect.

The campaign, called Cash Gordon, is designed to raise awareness of the control Charlie Whelan’s Unite has on Gordon Brown’s Labour Party beyond the Westminster village.

The most innovative aspect of the initiative is its integration of “competitive campaigning.” Users will accrue “action points” for reading briefings on the issue, getting their friends involved, and for directly tweeting Charlie Whelan.

Commenting on the launch, Conservative Party Chairman Eric Pickles said:

“By making it easy for people to spread the word out to their non-political friends, this groundbreaking campaign is designed to bring a new wave of pressure on to Gordon Brown’s complete reliance on cash from Charlie Whelan and Unite.

“Facebook often gets forgotten about in Westminster. But with twelve million of us using it every day to connect to our friends and interests, we still see it as a key online battleground for peer-to-peer campaigning.

Once again the Conservatives push online show just how behind Labour is when it comes to leveraging online communities as part of wider campaigns.

Pickles added: “I’m proud that the Conservatives have consistently been leading the way in its use of the internet. In the last few weeks independent research has shown us way ahead in our use of email, and we’ve become the first party to launch apps on both the iPhone and the Blackberry.”

Hat Tip: Henry Macrory

The Conservatives have today released a new advert highlighting Gordon Brown’s failure to get his union paymasters to call off the British Airways strike.

In a speech later on today David Cameron will invoke the spirit of Margaret Thatcher’s government to continue his attack on striking unions, and increase the pressure on Gordon Brown.

Following the collapse of last ditch talks between Unite and BA, along with the announcement that the RMT will hold the first national railway strike in 16 years, the Conservative leader will accuse Brown of being “feeble” and too willing to give into vested interests.

Speaking in London he will say:

“Margaret Thatcher’s government was defined by taking the side of the people against the powerful, the vested interest – those whose survival depended on keeping things as they were. Take her union reforms.

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Commenting on the news that talks aimed at averting a strike at BA have collapsed, Shadow Transport Secretary, Theresa Villiers said:

“Labour’s union paymasters at Unite are determined to inflict travel misery on thousands of families. It is disgraceful that they are going ahead with this unnecessary strike.

“Gordon Brown should do all he can to urge Unite – who are funding his general election campaign – to call off the strike. Or he should stop taking their money.

“Britain now faces Labour’s Spring of discontent with militant unions threatening to bring our railways to a standstill as well. Strike action could leave the country facing a serious transport meltdown.”

It would appear that tonight we’ve seen a Twitter first, a Conservative party press officer tweeting from backstage as BBC Question Time is recorded.

This may not sound like much, but the BBC tries very hard to keep secret what goes on during the recording of Question Time. But with twittering press officers such as Paul Stephenson, the parties health press officer, sitting in the wings this will become increasingly difficult.

A new opinion poll for The Sun newspaper has found that an overwhelming majority of people think that the BA strike is ‘unjustified’ and should be called off.

According to online pollsters YouGov, who conducted the survey, 59% of people do not support the actions of the Unite union who are behind the strike action.

Unsurprisingly support for the strike is higher amongst Labour voters, with 28% of these stating the decision to strike is justified. This compares to only 15% of Conservative voters.

A new row involving the governments advertising arm, the Central Office of Information, is brewing after it emerged pre-election spending hit a record high.

Unpublished figures reveal that central Government advertising in January 2010 was the highest ever January on record, burning through a massive £30 million of taxpayers’ cash in that month alone.

Ministers have refused to publish details of the advertising and marketing campaigns that are being run at taxpayers’ expense in the run up to the General Election – pledging only to release the data in annual accounts in August 2010.

Defending it decision not to disclose the cost of current campaigns the head of COI, Mark Lund, said it would incur “disproportionate cost” to release the details.

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