IS IT a smudge? Is it a child’s scribble? No, it’s the new Conservative Party logo.

David Cameron, the new leader, is replacing the famous flaming torch of liberty introduced by Margaret Thatcher with a squiggly impression of an oak tree. It’s the party’s first new logo for more than a quarter of a century.

The new logo, which cost £40,000 to develop, is part of the rebranding of the party, aimed at promoting a more modern, softer, environmentally friendly image. However, the logo immediately ran into a barrage of criticism from party activists.

The image was due to be made public next week before the party’s annual conference, but it leaked out when conference organisers posted security passes to party members with the logo printed on it.

The logo was developed by the London market agency Perfect Day, which spent two months consulting focus groups. A party official said: “We consulted members across the country about our new identity. The values they wanted to see represented were strength, endurance, renewal and growth. We tested a large number of different images. The tree logo proved the overwhelming favourite.”

The oak tree was chosen because it represents solidity, tradition, friendliness towards the environment and Britishness. While the concept of the oak tree has proved popular, the portrayal chosen has aroused disappointment.

Tim Montgomerie, who was chief of staff for Iain Duncan Smith when he was Tory leader and who is now editor of the influential Conservativehome.com website, said: “It’s disappointing. It’s a really ugly thing. This looks like a smudge.”

The comments on the website of Iain Dale, a leading Tory commentator and prospective candidate, were overwhelmingly negative. One contributor, Ali McNab, wrote: “It looks like a three-year-old has been let loose with a crayon.”

James Maskell, a party member, said: “Our membership subs go up to pay thousands of pounds to create a new logo to replace the Torch and the results of that is this?” Another contributor said: “It looks like it’s been drawn, then scrubbed out. Like the Tories can’t make their mind up.”

However, Rita Clifton, chairman of Interbrand UK, was more positive, saying: “It’s easy to take shots at new brands. Whether it has nice aesthetics is less important than the message it is trying to get across. They want a new and softer image, and this absolutely is a new and softer image, no one can deny that.”

The previous logo, the “freedom torch”, was introduced by Mrs Thatcher in 1977 and revamped by Michael Howard in 2004.

Mr Cameron and his team have concluded that one of the party’s main problems is its poor image, and much of their strategy has been aimed at “decontaminating the brand”. An advertising executive, Steve Hilton, was put in charge of communications.

A Labour Party spokesman said: “This is classic David Cameron — putting his public relations strategy ahead of tough policy decisions. The Conservative Party needs more than a respray if its going to be taken seriously.”

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