Tory party close to over . . . discuss (8)
I believe the answer is:
consider
'discuss' is the definition.
(I know that consider is a more specific form of discuss)
'tory party close to over' is the wordplay.
'tory' becomes 'con' (abbreviation for conservative).
'party' becomes 'side' (eg a side or party in a contract).
'close to' indicates one should take the final letters (the 'close' to the word).
The last letter of 'over' is 'r'.
'con'+'side'+'r'='CONSIDER'
(Other definitions for consider that I've seen before include "Go over something in one's mind" , "Suppose" , "Cogitate" , "view" , "Ponder on" .)