David Cameron Joins Twitter

The Tory leader clocked up more than 50,000 followers within hours of his debut, but was following just four other posters – the Conservative party, William Hague, Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt.

In his first tweet via @david_cameron, the prime minister wrote: "I'm starting Conference with this new Twitter feed about my role as Conservative Leader. I promise there won't be 'too many tweets...'".

He followed up by posting a photograph of himself meeting staff at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford, then fell silent for several hours.

In the meantime. a torrent of abuse filled his Twitter timeline. Some disgruntled tweeters used it to attack the government's policies. Some expressed their dislike for Cameron in colourful language. Others merely mocked.

Political opponents were among those joined the fray. John Prescott, the former deputy prime minister and a Twitter stalwart, gleefully reposted a series of questions poking fun at Cameron's upper crust background.

"Hi Dave I wonder if you could tell me which wine goes best with roast swan? Cheers," wrote one tweeter, Amanda. Another, Roland Moore, ridiculed Cameron's debut message: "I promise there won't be 'too many tweets.' > Mind you, you also promised you'd cut the deficit not the NHS."

Cameron has previously spoken of his reluctance to follow in the footsteps of many other high profile politicians in joining Twitter. Asked about it during a radio interview in 2009, he remarked: "The trouble with Twitter, the instantness of it – too many tweets might make a twat." He later apologised for the comments.

While Cameron's presence on Twitter may be a source of annoyance to many, it may be offer some relief to one user. A namesake of the prime minister living in Oregon, who has posted for months as @davidcameron, is clearly weary of being mistaken for the Tory leader. His Twitter page declares: "I am NOT the prime minister. I am a dude from America, who is more awesome than the prime minister."

This article was written by Barry Neild, for guardian.co.uk on Sunday 7th October 2012 00.56 Europe/London

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2010

image: © bisgovuk

The Guardian

@guardianmore stories from The Guardian

Latest news, sport, business, comment, analysis and reviews from the Guardian, the world's leading liberal voice.