Is the Party over?
The Collapse and Rebuilding of the Conservative Party
Writing is where I discover the stories that have always lived within me each book a journey, each page a revelation.
— Tony Gething
A Grassroots Wake-Up Call for a Party in Crisis
In Is the Party Over?, Tony Gething, a veteran Conservative activist and internationally respected governance reformer, delivers a compelling, clear-eyed account of the Party’s unravelling told not from the comfort of Westminster, but from the trenches of real political life. This is not the polished narrative of career politicians or spin doctors. This is the raw truth from the campaign frontlines.
about the author
Everyone’s life is like a journey with highs and lows, challenging circumstances and filled with heartfelt moments. Explore here a story of Tony Gething, who stood strong without diverting from others’ expectations, old traditions, and the way politics has become disconnected from everyday people. [TG1] He was born and grew up in Wolverhampton, a city in the middle of England known for factories and hard work. Tony’s family strongly supported the Labour Party, and many of them were leaders in trade unions, active in the protection of workers’ rights. Some were even local political leaders.
But in 1974, something changed.
At just fifteen years old, Gething made a decision that would shape the rest of his life. Without telling a soul, he walked three miles from his home to his local Conservative Party office and volunteered to help in that year’s general election campaign. That simple act, done without fanfare or guidance, was the start of a journey that would take him from doorsteps in the West Midlands to the political corridors of power in Europe, the Middle East, and beyond.
What Readers Are Saying
What This Book Is About
Is the Party Over? is more than a political autopsy. It’s a field report, a warning siren and a roadmap to recovery.
Gething takes readers inside the forgotten spaces of politics, church halls, local AGMs, and door-to-door canvasses where the first signs of collapse were long visible. He listens to the volunteers, councillors, and association chairs who tried to hold the line while Central Office drifted into echo chambers of strategy, slogans, and self-preservation.
With unmatched honesty, the book explores the forces behind the Conservative Party’s 2024 defeat:
- Ideological confusion and mission drift
- The breakdown of local infrastructure
- Detachment from communities and civic life
- A campaign culture that valued performance over presence
about the book
In Is the Party Over?, Tony Gething delivers a timely and deeply personal account of the dramatic fall of the Conservative Party in the 2024 UK General Election. But this book is not just about loss; it’s about what comes next. Drawing on decades of grassroots experience, Gething explores how one of the most successful political machines in modern democratic history lost its way and how it might just find a path forward.
Most political books are written by people sitting in fancy offices in London. But Is the Party Over? is different. Tony Gething writes from the ground up. He shares the point of view of regular people, the local volunteers, councillors, and party members, who worked hard to support the Conservative Party in their towns and cities. These are the people who knocked on doors, handed out flyers in bad weather, and talked to angry voters who felt let down. They watched the trust people had in the party slowly fall apart.
Using both his own story and the voices of these local heroes, Gething shows how the party lost touch with the people. But he also sees hope. Is the Party Over? is not just about what went wrong. It’s also a message: don’t give up, start rebuilding.
Gething has seen the Conservative Party at its best and its worst. He’s been part of the hard graft behind local campaigns, the rebuilding of associations, and the mentoring of young candidates. In the 2024 election, as the Party suffered its most devastating collapse in modern history, he stood alongside other grassroots organisers asking the same question that headlines around the country echoed: Is the party over?
Key Themes
1. Collapse from Within
The Conservative defeat in 2024 wasn’t just about public anger or Labour resurgence. It was about a party that forgot how to listen. Gething outlines the long, slow rot: centralisation, careerism, the hollowing of local institutions, and the sidelining of activists.
2. Disconnected Leadership
The book draws sharp contrasts between local campaigners on the ground and the remote, out-of-touch strategies coming from Central Office. Gething exposes how internal democracy was replaced by managerialism, how ideas were replaced by slogans, and how political identity gave way to brand confusion.
3. The Grassroots View
At the heart of this book are the voices of Conservative members from Red Wall towns to southern shires. These people weren’t pundits or politicians. They were the backbone of the Party. And they were ignored. Their stories are painful but essential.
4. Learning from Abroad
Having worked in fragile democracies and transitional states, Gething brings rare insight.
5. Rebuilding with Purpose
It’s a blueprint for the future. Gething outlines real steps the Party can take to rebuild its legitimacy from policy cafés and civic partnerships to meaningful reform of its internal structures.
Why This Book Matters Now
British politics is at a crossroads. Voter trust is low. Traditional parties are losing ground to new movements. The Conservatives have two choices: reinvent or become irrelevant.
Is the Party Over? is a wake-up call. It does not indulge nostalgia. It does not spare blame. But it refuses to give up on the idea that parties can still serve the public good if they remember what that means