Morris - I'll broaden reach of Tory Party
James Morris has vowed to 'broaden the reach' of the Conservative Party in a bid to ensure 'a strong presence' in communities across the country.
The Halesowen and Rowley Regis MP has been appointed Conservative Party headquarters vice-chairman for training and development, replacing Anthea McIntyre.
He said he was 'very pleased to have been handed the position and added: "Part of this role will be ensuring that Conservative activists across the country are equipped with the skills they need to represent their communities.
"It is important that the Conservative Party has a strong presence in every community across the United Kingdom and campaigns on the issues that are important to them.
"I will be trying to meet as many activists and campaigners as possible to see what works best, and seeing what we can do as a Party to broaden our reach."
Mr Morris, aged 50, was first elected to Parliament in 2010.
He was one of a series of new appointments to CCHQ – the so called 'internal machine' of the party – which also saw Brandon Lewis replace Sir Patrick McLoughlin as Tory Chairman.
Recently-elected MPs Kemi Badenoch and Ben Bradley were appointed vice-chair for candidates and vice-chair for youth, respectively, while Chris Skidmore, minister for the constitution, was promoted to vice-chairman for policy.
It follows an internal review of the Tories' election performance by former cabinet minister Sir Eric Pickles, which recommended changes to attract more young people and ethnic minority voters to join and support the party.
