It's interesting to note that not even die-hard Tory commentators like Matthew Parris are predicting that the Tories are going to win the next general election hands down. They're not even talking about a "hung parliament" any more. Two years away is a long time, of course, and anything can happen under Gordon Brown. Nevertheless, the penny must have surely dropped by now that David Cameron has as much chance of leading the Tories to victory as had William Hague, Iain Duncan Smith and Michael Howard.

K Philips, London,

Why don't you just come out and say it? The Tories are divided down the middle over the real threat to their survival - Gordon Brown. As someone who voted Tory for the first time in 2005 after voting Labour all my life, thanks to Michael Howard having a clear vision of what he wanted to do in government and Blair messing about in foreign misadventure, my vote will be going back to Labour if Cameron doesn't put up some decent policies or get out and let someone in who doesn't look as if he got the job as part of a Young Enterprise scheme.

Louise Michaelson, Reading,

Given the size of the sample, most of the 'differences' outlined in this article are not statistically valid and should not be regarded as serious findings.
Another useless and misleading 'survey'!

chinapuss, London,

Presumably Cameron will use the selection process to add those of his kind to the candidate list, changing the complexion of the party in parliament.

Nicholas Keen, Philadelphia, USA

Observer - how true.
That 90% of Labour and Lib Dems would still go for the NHS shows either they not very bright or they value a system working to a known budget that benefits the staff but not the customer.

eddie reader, birmingham, uk

Every four or five years we asked to vote at a general election, we place a cross in a box representing the person and party one hopes to represent us. That cross gives whoever who wins license to do what ever, Politicians will say they have been given authority to follow a manifesto as thick as a small novel that the electorate has never had the opportunity to read. We live under an elected dictatorship, by and large.

Daisy Draper, Cowes, Isle of wight

From your report, it would appear that the Conservatives are more in touch with themselves, and don't feel that they can only have opinions that reflect the party line. I would feel more confident in the Parliamentary system if this was the case for all parties.

Having said that, however, it would appear that all parties are totally out of touch with reality, if they think that the UK is either united or tolerant. Most people would like to think that they are tolerant - but in my experience, tolerance is very rare these days. And what exactly is "unity" now?

Steven, Cambridge, UK

Its obvious that David Cameron is taking the best stance that he can on morality and race, and though I do not agree with the the Conservative party on the whole, I feel that it is a shame that many of the Conservative MPs are still too backward in their own ideologies to realise that Liberal thinking is taking precedence in todays electorate and that in order for them to stand any chance of moving forwards as a legitimate and respected party, they must represent the liberal views of the majority of the population.

Curtis Anderson, Gloucester, UK

I am a Lbour supporter,but I must admit that I am one of many people born abroad who think that this so called diverse culture has been in effect divisive and responsible for the many of Britain's problems. It is very defficult to expect people from different cultures and Religions to suddenly change,least of all those whose religion is diametrically opposed to the principle of tolarence and compassion.

Chris Jaggo, Stockton-on-Tees , Teesside. UK.

'Labour MPs are virtually unanimous (94 per cent) in agreeing that “one of the things that would most improve life in Britain today is people being more tolerant of different ethnic groups and cultures”'

Except that their definition of "tolerant" is "tolerant of people the Labour Party likes". Any sports shooter will tell you exactly how 'tolerant' Labour really is.

Alex Swanson, Milton Keynes, UK

'..So, while 98 per cent of Labour MPs and 85 per cent of Lib Dems agree that “Britain is a better country to live in now than it was 20 years ago”...'

Or rather, 98 per cent of Labour MPs and 85 per cent of Lib Dems have got their heads in the clouds and are totally out of touch with reality...!

Rod Munch, Northampton, UK

The party system no longer reflects the real debate. On Europe the pros and antis were to be found in both parties. We are now shaping up to a major debate on secularisation - divorce, abortion, schooling and so on, the common thread being that post-Christian attitudes are causing big changes. Free marketers tend to be secular, not through instinct but for consistency, as do left wingers. However there are a significant number of Tories who don't want secularisation, and some older school socialists who are beginning to realise that they agree with them.

Malcolm McLean, Bradford, UK

That MPs are out of touch with voters is self-evident. We have returned to the 18th Century where the majority of the population is unrepresented and the party machines now control the rotten boroughs. Each party is like a religion, you subscribe to its articles of faith or lose access to communion; if more politicians had faith in something more transcendent than simple materialism the country might be a happier place, but currently those on the bridge do not see how much water is entering the engine-room

Observer, Peterborough, England

Well done the Tories, they have every right to be sceptical about so called liberal values which seem to parlay into the most illiberal demands. The whole nation is in the grip of touchy-feely coercion, a place where everything is related to the lowest common denominator, where to be in the majority calls out for an inversion of the table to accommodate the ineffectual and the nihilist. Any social policy introduced under this Government is crafted to be of an undeniable nature, protecting, boosting and encouraging some section or other of the population. What is created is a Baltic consensus loosely held together by law and not by nature. At a time when legal system is comparatively ineffectual we call upon that spluttering organ to be the arbiter in a greater range of situations with the result that we shift from summonsing to cautioning, from feared law to risible cajoling. True liberal values are a savage beast, our version of liberal is sneaky and cant.

Malcolm Turner, Alsager, England

It has been obvious since the days of Margaret Thatcher, if not earlier, that there is no such thing as The Conservative Party. The alliance masquerading under that name comprises at least two, possibly more, disparate entities, who will rarely see eye-to-eye. The Labour Party will affect coherence, if only to win elections; the Conservative Party will not, even at the expense of losing elections. Perhaps it's time for a divorce: Liberal Conservatives and UKIP.

Tom Katz, Weybridge, UK