Sir George Young and four ministers join 'Blue Collar' Tory group Others include Andrew Robathan, the Armed Forces minister; Matthew Hancock, the skills minister; Mike Penning, the Northern Ireland minister, and Stephen Crabb, the junior minister for Wales. The group sees a potential parallel in the 1959 election, which saw the old Etonian Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, defeat the "Hampstead intellectual" Labour leader Hugh Gaitskell with the support of millions of working class voters. John Stevenson, the MP for Carlisle and the group's chief adviser, said many existing government policies already helped blue collar workers. However, the party needs to go further and to communicate better with aspirational voters, he said. "We need to have policies linking in to that group again so that we resonate with their aspirations and outlook," he said. Mr Stevenson suggested raising the personal tax allowance beyond the planned £10,000 limit, perhaps linking it to the minimum wage, and boosting educational opportunities for children from working class backgrounds. "To a certain extent we have got to get our message across that we are for those who want to improve their own lives, their children's lives," he said. I think we have actually got quite a number of policies that do that but sometimes maybe the message at this moment in time is getting a little bit lost. We have just got to make sure that message actually gets home to that group so that they do realise the Conservative Party is on their side. Clark Vasey, the coordinator of Blue Collar Conservatism, said many thought the Tories were suffering from a perception that the party is "disconnected from the average voter." ""Plebgate" has added to these negative perceptions and has undoubtedly damaged the standing of the Party and must be dealt with," he said. However, the sense of disconnection is more of politics in general. He described aspirational "blue collar" voters as "hard working" people on average incomes "who need to feel that hard work is rewarded." "These are the voters which David Cameron must reach if he is to restore the party's and ultimately the nation's fortunes," he said. The group is asking Tories to back the three principles on which it is founded: :: The Conservative Party is at its strongest when it reaches out to voters of all backgrounds; :: The Conservatives need the support of blue collar voters to achieve an overall majority; :: The Conservatives must reward ordinary hard working voters who take responsibility for their own lives.