A week has passed since the election results were known and the backroom meetings of hung parliament politics began.

Now the shape of our government is clear, and their policies and priorities becoming more so by the day, but with hopes of a so-called ‘progressive coalition’ dashed, what are the progressive aspirations of the new administration?

This initial document sets out a clear platform for what Clegg and Cameron have decided should be their focus for the next five years, or at the very least what the pair can coerce their members to agree on.

With the well-documented obstacles that stood in the way of a simple agreement you could be forgiven for forgetting that this document is the easy part. Like the best-laid plans of mice and men, achieving all the goals will be a huge challenge, especially for a potentially unstable partnership.

For now RateMyTory will analyse the progressive rating of the agreement on its merits. Judgement on how many of the goals are achieved, or achievable, will be reserved for another day.

The promises of the document amount to a rather progressive 54% rating, 15 points higher than the average rating of all pre-election Tory MPs. A clear sign that some categories were pushed up by the compromises that the Liberals gained from the Conservatives.

Climate change is one area where both parties found themselves nodding in agreement and look to make a lot of progress. The liberal cause of electoral reform has led to an agreement on the House of Lords, complete with a proportional and fully elected upper chamber scoring a high rating.

Meanwhile, some taxation categories, including inheritance tax and marriage tax, have seen unprogressive Tory policy tempered by an allowable lack of support from their liberal partners.

The key weak point is immigration, where the Conservatives have had their wish of an annual cap granted.

Unmentioned issues include abortion, which Cameron has promised a free vote on, LBGT issues and fox hunting. Further details are due to be released in the coming weeks.

See the coalition’s initial profile here.

Research carried out by RateMyTory has shown that the more a Tory candidate says the less progressive they become.

Statistics collated from all 350-plus rated Tories has found a clear negative correlation between the amount of information we have on a candidate and their overall progressive rating.

MPs and PPCs have been grouped by the number of RateMyTory’s ten progressive categories that we have scored them on. The results can be seen below.

Tories with two or three complete categories have average progressive ratings of 46.1 and 44.8 respectively. As the amount of information on a candidate increases, the average ratings plummet.

Those with seven completed categories score 36.8 whilst the 12 well-profiled candidates with nine scores average a mere 32.8 per cent.

Sharp Tory raters may have noticed the chart excludes candidates about whom RateMyTory has either one or ten complete categories. This is because those only rated in one category have insufficient information for an accurate progressive rating whilst there are only two candidates that have a complete set of ten scores, too small a sample size. For journalistic accuracy the full table can be seen here.

These findings come as no surprise in a campaign where barely a day goes past without a Tory revealing their true opinion, whether on gay rights, immigration or climate change.

However, at least in these cases the Tories’ progressive mask came off before polling day giving voters the chance to pass judgement on the comments made and opinions expressed.

Despite the best efforts of RateMyTory and our contributors there are still many Tory candidates in winnable seats who refuse to offer any insight into what they believe or how they will represent their constituents if elected. Such laziness or lack of transparency is appalling with an election just two days away.

One can only assume that, if their fellow candidates are anything to go by, the silent element of the Tory party are staying quiet to keep their views to themselves before it reveals the costs them votes.

“So I am afraid I remain a bit cynical about the Global Warming debate. I note that when the debate began it was used to explain the drought summers we had in the late 1990′s – then when the weather noticeably cooled off in the UK ‘global warming’ suddenly meant that the UK  would get colder. I can’t help be a bit suspicious”

Marcus Wood, PPC for Torbay
Progressive Rating: 20%

Marcus Wood isn’t even a Tory MP yet, but he’s already talking like one. With such a clear grasp of the subject matter, combining vague recollections of a couple of hot summers and a few cold winters, Mr Wood has skipped the boring part of studying those scientific frivolities – facts and figures – and jumped straight to the fun part – uninformed conclusions.

Is he your candidate or do you have more information on Marcus Wood? If so then please let us know via the comments box.

Each day RateMyTory will pick one quote from a Tory candidate and question whether these are the views that Cameron had in mind when he said his party have progressed.

Do you have a suggestion for Quote of the Day? Email us at rob.macpherson@progressives.org.uk

“Well, the children of Cleckheaton only need an education in ‘vocational subjects’ so it won’t really matter to them.”

Janice Small, PPC for Batley and Spen
Progressive Rating: 20%

Janice Small’s day isn’t complete until she’s thrown a town’s entire young generation onto the waste heap, having seen all they were worth from her home in Kent.

SparkOnline recounts Small’s comments at Whitcliffe Mount school in Cleckheaton that angered parents by insulting the intelligence of local pupils. The quote came after she was asked by one parent if the arrival of a potential Tory new private high school would force Whitcliffe to become a secondary modern.

Ms Small has clearly failed to embraced the inclusive Swedish educational model that the Tories were trumpeting only last week.

Is she your candidate or do you have more information on Janice Small? If so then please let us know via the comments box.

Each day RateMyTory will pick one quote from a Tory candidate and question whether these are the views that Cameron had in mind when he said his party have progressed.

Do you have a suggestion for Quote of the Day? Email us at rob.macpherson@progressives.org.uk

Wakefield’s notorious Tory candidate Alex Story has made the headlines twice this morning for two stories that further justify his record as one of RateMyTory’s worst scoring PPCs.

A nanny has claimed that Alex Story broke the law on minimum wage by paying just £2.50 an hour for her services. 27-year-old student, Maham Hashmi, said: “I felt like a slave, what they were paying was outrageous.”

When confronted over the claim Story furiously responded: “Have you tried to hire a nanny in London, do you have children, do you?”

The news comes a day after the Tory candidate sparked controversy at a hustings event in Wakefield by suggesting the BNP were an offshoot of the Labour party, who apparently has encouraged voters to flock to the extremist right due to failings on immigration.

He argued that Ukip’s relationship with the Conservatives was comparable to the BNP’s relationship with Labour adding: “The BNP vote is in fact an ex-Labour vote that is disenfranchised from the Labour party and is in disagreement with the Labour party on the immigration issue.”

Neither story should come as a surprise to RateMyTory readers who saw Alex Story (ProgRat: 3%) feature for his belief that the welfare state was to blame for the kidnap of Shannon Matthews.

The revelations also come in the same week that RateMyTory’s previously lowest scoring PPC, Philip Lardner, was suspended for homophobic remarks.

As our lowest scoring Conservative candidates continue to reveal their true beliefs, we begin to wonder which Tory will burst the bubble of progressive Conservatism and justify their dismal progressive rating next.

“Unfortunately global warming has become a constant crusade by the Left to impose a new, thoroughly painful ideology on us, when their old ones have been demolished”

Edward Leigh, MP for Gainsborough
Progressive Rating: 16%

Leigh may have voted in favour of some eco-legislation but his views leave much to be desired and are symptomatic of a Conservative party that repeatedly fail to take climate change seriously.

Judging by his wide spectrum of regressive views, the ’painful ideology’ of global warming may be supported by scientists, but is too tough a pill for this Cornerstone Group member to swallow.

Is he your candidate or do you have more information on Edward Leigh? If so then please let us know via the comments box.

Each day RateMyTory will pick one quote from a Tory candidate and question whether these are the views that Cameron had in mind when he said his party have progressed.

Do you have a suggestion for Quote of the Day? Email us at rob.macpherson@progressives.org.uk

Don’t you just hate it when an MP votes for one thing and says another?

We do. It makes our job very tricky. So tricky in fact that we’re asking someone else to do the scoring for us – you.

Whenever we find cases of contradictory MPs we will call in the jury and ask you to vote how we should rate the MP on the issue.

This week’s ‘Quote or Vote’ debate focuses on the LGBT rights record of shadow health secretary, and Cambridgeshire South MP, Andrew Lansley.

His profile shows he currently scores a 2, the standard mark for an MP who has voted a mixture of for and against equal gay rights, but closer scrutiny raises the question of whether this is an accurate assessment or should past discrepancies lead to a lower grade.  

In 2002 Lansley tabled an amendment that that would extend adoption rights to unmarried couples but not homosexuals. In a radio interview at the time he said: “I want the legislation to be constructed in way that it reproduced the form of natural parenthood wherever possible. Natural parenthood is essential a couple, a man and a woman, living together.”

A Conservative candidate in Scotland has been suspended after claiming on his website that homosexuality was ‘not normal behaviour’ and defending Section 28.

Keen followers of RateMyTory will recognise Philip Lardner, PPC for Ayrshire North and Arran, already for his racist views that justified both Enoch Powell and Rhodesian white supremacist Ian Smith.

His homophobic comments were captured by Left Foot Forward before being removed to try and cover up the odious Tory’s beliefs.

Lardner’s website had said that: “As your MP I will support the rights of parents and teachers to refuse to have their children taught that homosexuality is ‘normal’ behaviour or an equal lifestyle choice to traditional marriage… I will not accept that their behaviour is ‘normal’ or encourage children to indulge in it.”

“The promotion of homosexuality by public bodies (as per ‘clause 28′/section 2a in Scotland,) was correctly outlawed by Mrs Thatcher’s government.”

Philip Lardner already had a Progressive Rating of 0% and remains firmly unchanged.

“Door-knocking is arduous and often you can feel quite intrusive just striking up conversations.”

Like a ghastly kind of cocktail party?

“Yes, and one you’re not invited to.”

Joanne Cash, PPC for Westminster North
Progressive Rating: ?%

If this Marc-Jacobs-sporting candidate wishes to avoid the rigmarole of having to converse with ‘regular people’ on the doorstep then she has definitely chosen one of the most appropriate seats in the country in Westminster North, a constituency that boasts Notting Hill and its affluent residents.

Perhaps her reluctance to knock on doors comes from a fear of actually being pinned down on her own opinions – something which her RateMyTory profile is still void of.

Is she your candidate or do you have more information on Joanne Cash? If so then please let us know via the comments box.

Each day RateMyTory will pick one quote from a Tory candidate and question whether these are the views that Cameron had in mind when he said his party have progressed.

Do you have a suggestion for Quote of the Day? Email us at rob.macpherson@progressives.org.uk

Progress’ David versus Goliath campaign has already successfully raised thousands of pounds for Labour candidates who are being targeted by Lord Ashcroft’s plentiful and controversial donations.

25 ‘Davids’ from marginals in Tory target seats across the country are racing to the finish in an effort to garner the most donations and win an extra £1000 top up towards their local campaign. The deadline for donations that count towards the competition is this Friday, April 30, so there is still time to choose who to donate to.

RateMyTory was wondering who we should support, before reaching the obvious conclusion that we should analyse the progressive rating of each Ashcroft backed Tory candidate in the featured constituencies and throw our backing behind those battling the least progressive Goliaths.

So here is a rundown of the five worst Goliaths, in reverse order, complete with links to the profile and donation pages of the local Labour candidate.

5) Lorraine Fullbrook (ProgRat: 30%) – PPC for Ribble South

Using Ashcroft donations to fund paid phone canvassing, Lorraine Fullbrook calls for an abolition of the Human Rights Act, an increase of the inheritance tax threshold and an immigration cap to downsize numbers from ‘hundreds of thousands to tens of thousands’.

Labour candidate: David Borrow
Read his story and donate to his campaign here

4) Charlotte Leslie (ProgRat: 20%) – PPC for Bristol North West

An uninspiring combination of invisible views on policy and an invisible presence on the doorstep. Leslie has little to say on the majority of the issues in this election, apart from a support for reprising the couple’s tax allowance, but does manage to find the time to pay commercial deliverers to give out her leaflets.

Labour candidate: Sam Townend
Read his story and donate to his campaign here

3) Alec Shelbrooke (ProgRat: 20%) – PPC for Elmet and Rothwell

Alec Shelbrooke is a keen supporter of Osborne’s inheritance tax changes and his local party has said they will run the country like they ran the local council in Leeds. The local Labour candidate has responded that “this means frontline cuts, privatisation and an assult on the pay and conditions of low-paid workers.”

Labour candidate: James Lewis
Read his story and donate to his campaign here

2) Louise Bagshawe (ProgRat: 20%) – PPC for Corby

A multi-millionaire herself, despite her admittance of laziness, who still rakes in Ashcroft’s regular injections to fund a full-time local organiser. She calls for tighter immigrations controls and is madly in favour of fox hunting – frequently tweeting to let followers know where she stands on the issue.

Labour candidate: Phil Hope
Read his story and donate to his campaign here

1) Richard Drax (ProgRat: 8%) – PPC for Dorset South

A clear champion for the unprogressive cause, Richard Drax has become notorious on RateMyTory for his views that outright deny climate change, support fox hunting, back Dan Hannan’s archaic views on the NHS and when asked about gay rights says he is glad the Pope ‘has the spine to stand up to all these equality zealots in this country’.

RateMyTory will certainly be backing Jim Knight, the Labour candidate ‘David’ in Dorset South, and we encourage you to do the same to keep this unprogressive Tory out of Westminster.

Labour candidate: Jim Knight
Read his story and donate to his campaign here