STOCKS & SHARES 1

The by-election at Burnham Green was unexceptional in most respects; the death of a sitting candidate, the election of the incumbent party - Labour - the usual motley crew of protesters, raving loony, and ‘spoilers’; but among these ill-assorted bedfellows, a new kind of candidate caught the eye. Though ostensibly Tory, Jonathan Charles had fought the campaign on issues such as total integration into Europe and changes in tax laws which verged on complete abolition as a future goal.

These issues being raised had come as a surprise to Tory Central office in Smith Square. The candidate had been selected to fight the seat because not only did he have impeccable credentials as an ex-councillor and son of Eton, he was simply by a mile the most charismatic of the potential candidates available, he had seemed an obvious choice. At his selection interviews he had given no hint of such policies, only blandness and ‘the party line’ had emerged at that time.