FOR Conservative MPs to have kept Iain Duncan Smith as their leader would have been akin to turkeys voting for Christmas.

Amidst all the accusations of disloyalty, backstabbing, and ignoring the membership, one stark reality would have shone through as the 165 voting Conservatives stared down the barrel of the gun. That, of course, was concern for their own skins. Which leader would be of greatest benefit to them in winning their seat at the next election.

Some commentators have described the events of the past few weeks as evidence that the Tory party is falling apart - I actually see it as a bold move, which was absolutely necessary if they were to have any chance of defeating Labour.

I remember, as a police superintendent in Middlesbrough, we had a procession of politicians who visited us, eager to know how so-called Zero Tolerance methods had slashed offending. They were all able people with a real interest in what was going on, but one visitor in particular stood out. He grasped ahead of all the other politicians the significance of what we had achieved and was the first high-profile visitor.

That was Michael Howard who was then the Home Secretary. Despite such a time-consuming position, he spent some time in a private session discussing the finer points of our strategy. He had come to Middlesbrough, not for a photo opportunity, but because of a genuine desire to learn, and seemed to grasp immediately the mechanics of our strategy, its effective use of resources and the impact at street level.

Over the years, I have watched how Mr Howard has conducted himself, how he has dusted himself down and maintained his stature, despite being linked with the failed Major administration.

It's no secret that, politically, I have socialist leanings, but I must confess that if Michael Howard were to lead the Conservative Party it would certainly make me sit up and listen to what they are saying.

On paper they have quite a radical manifesto - who would have believed a few years ago that it would be the Conservative Party pledging to cut tuition fees brought in under a Labour Government?

Ann Widdecombe has famously stated that there is "something of the night" about Michael Howard. It was meant as an insult, but actually I think such a characteristic is vital in the modern political world. You have to be focussed to the point of obsession, streetwise, media savvy and ruthless. Michael Howard looks the clear favourite to lead his party and, while the Labour majority may be too much to overhaul at the next election, halving it should be enough to keep him in the job for another crack.

By then Mr Howard will be 70. I suspect we will then see all the young guns who are not standing this time come to the fore in a bid to realise their ambitions to lead the Conservative Party.