The Prime Minister is attempting to tackle his “problem” with female voters by arranging a series of meetings with high-achieving women at No 10.
He is holding gatherings of influential people from different professions to find out “what women want” as he plans the next Tory election manifesto.
The charm offensive designed to put his “calm down, dear” gaffe firmly in the past, opened last week when the Prime Minister hosted a reception for women magazine editors, writers and broadcasters in Downing Street. Among the guests were BBC Newsnight’s Emily Maitlis, newsreader Mary Nightingale and Sky News anchorwoman Kay Burley.
The campaign is being driven by Susie Squire, the Prime Minister’s press secretary, a skilled networker who is keen to advance women’s issues.
Speaking at last week’s meeting, Mr Cameron acknowledged that he had a problem, telling guests: “When Samantha found out what I was doing tonight she said, ‘you do lots of unimportant things, but tonight is important, so don’t mess it up’.”
He added: “It’s great to see so many strong female role models in the room.” He finished by quipping that he had to leave to keep an appointment with “the ultimate role mode, Her Majesty the Queen”.
Allies say the PM wants to use the meetings to gain a better understanding of the daily problems and priorities of women, whether young mothers or women in business and the professions.
Mr Cameron has been dogged by accusations that he cannot relate to women voters. Former civil servant Dame Helen Ghosh claimed he surrounded himself with an “Old Etonian clique” of male friends, while opinion polls suggest that Tory support is around two points lower among women than men.
Mr Cameron last year apologised for using the phrase “calm down, dear” to a women MP during a rowdy Question Time session, saying: “That’s not me. But obviously I’ve come across in this way.”
