Miss Seagull's nightlife diary (Part II)

The last night of Conference drinking has the great feeling of desperation in the air.  People desperate to enjoy the last night, to impress that person they came to network with or even to "meet that special someone".  Whatever reason they were there it seemed every delegate had finally got their pass and they were going to make the most of the last moonlit evening in Bournemouth. 

Conservative Way Forward held the sit down dinner of the night where Lord Ashcroft was the keynote speaker.  Also in attendance of note were Angela Watkinson MP, Andrew Rosindell MP, Greg Hands MP , many of the new Conservative Future team, star blogger Iain Dale  and A-List candidate Conor Burns.  The sold out dinner was rather enjoyable.  Lord Ashcroft gave, with his usual clear cut honesty, a great walk through of the research and statistic he's done over the last two years.  Iain Dale was clearly giving the numbers deep contemplation as he seemed to have his eyes shut during most of the speech. 

From there it was back to the Highcliffe.  Everyone was desperate to get into the BBC reception.  By 11pm there was actually a queue to get in which is rather unusual for an invitation only event. However once in there, there was queu to get out.  John Culshaw's entertainment earlier had been fantastic as always but later on the room had become a veritable turkish sauna, filled with far more diary columnists than diary stories.  Maybe it was the heat but the wine had started to taste like vinegar and the fish canapes looked particularly unappetising.

So back into the main crush of the bar.  Every nook and cranny of the ground floor of the Highcliffe was filled with giggling Conservatives.  Yummy Jeremy Hunt and dashing Mark Field looked particularly sweet as they ran around the hotel laughing like a pair of schoolboys.  Liam Fox and his lovely wife seemed to be keeping people very entertained on the terrace where many had escaped to get away from the stifling heat of outside to the freezing ice cold sea air.  Everywhere you looked were women wrapped in oversize suit jackets that chivalrous gentleman had leant them.  Where they found these chivalrous gentleman I'm not entirely sure since everywhere I looked where chaps who seemed to find it acceptable to shove us ladies out of the way while they barged their way to the front of the bar queue. 

Upstairs a lit window filled with people belied the existence of a private booze up. Various people had idea's on what was going on in there. Orgies, late night speech writing sessions and journalists using digital listening devices to spy on us were all given as suggestions to the event going on in there.  More likely it was a drinking session.  At one point someone told me the room number was 105 - so if the resident of Room 105 wishes to divulge the real purpose of the party I'd love to know.

However all good things must come to an end.  The Highcliffe staff, very unreasonably actually expected people to leave at some point.  However as all week people managed to find alternative watering holes to make sure they didn't have to stop drinking. Verdict of the week is that the St. Michael's  Hotel with their 24 hour bar and "interesting" clientele - including a resident stripper - was the place to be. 

And so to today.  The sensible had booked their rooms for another night so they could lie in past checkout time - the unlucky had to drag themselves out in a dishevelled state at 10:30am and stagger down the hill to the BIC.  So remember - if you saw a young person (or some of the older delegates) looking a little underwhelmed in Cameron's closing speech remember it's not the speech - it's the hangover. 

Comments

[Simon Turton]

Yes... a hangover could well be in order when we get to the next election, because despite everyone in the party willing things to happen, as of now it ain't!

I am quite active in my local association and the average age must be late-60s; me in my v. early 40s is frequently described as "young", which is extremely flattering.

However, my main point is that there will be an increasing mismatch between the message from the metropolitan-focused leadership and the opinions at the grassroots. Those in their 60s and 70s will remember the Thatcher years and what led up to that historic election win in 1979: stagflation and unruly unions, to say the least.

Those of my generation and younger, for whom politics is a massive turn-off, there is a need and desire to see something different again.

The me-too approach to politics, as with brands, means that the premium brand wins the day. I don't for one minute believe that Labour is a premium brand any longer (it is quite tarnished now) but the Tory position of copying and trying to better Labour policies is nothing but folly.

The grassroots activists - those who will be door-knocking and really trying to sell the message - will find it hard to motivate themselves when all they will be able to do is repeat Labour policies in Tory clothes (mixed metaphors notwithstanding!).

Cameron is right that the party needs to (and I hate the phrase) re-connect with the people, but perhaps they should have asked the grassroots what the main issues to voters are. It would have given a steer to the direction that the party should be going.

Unfortunately, Cameron's approach has been to throw out the baby with the proverbial bathwater. So, all we have to entice the electorate is a trendy new logo (they think) that could be applied to anything to do with timber, the Green Party or a symbol for a woodland visitor attraction. We have no policies whatsoever, but we do seem to have a list of what they won't be doing.

If I am disillusioned after this week in Bournemouth, the party doesn't stand a chance of winning the floating voter; no, they're now looking at the LibDems (at least they seem to have some policies).

I hope that between now and the next election that Cameron and his team start differentiating themselves from Labour; that they do come up with some real eye-catching and even controversial policies; that they stop imitating the on-message approach that New Labour used (we've now all seen that before) and that they start behaving like a real opposition party.

Talking of that drink...

Yours sincerely

Simon Turton

[James Maskell]

I thought we were promised more policy? That was I was expecting from this Conference. I feel very disappointed.

[malcolm]

You're always disappointed these days James.

[Ernesto Rebelde]

Power to the people.