"All passes have been cleared by the police"

I've just attended an off-camera briefing at CCHQ (the Pankhurst Room) about the Party Conference.  Here are the main points:

Accreditation: All passes (except very late applications) have been cleared by the Lancashire Constabulary.  Phew.  More than 8,500 passes have been issued - the best attendance for five years.

Slogan: "It's time for change" is the main Conference message.  The message - Gordon Brown is good at playing political games but has no vision for the country.

Policy reviews: At this Conference many policy group recommendations will be adopted or rejected.  Charges for supermarket parking has already been binned.

Opening day: Highlights on Sunday will be opening speech from William Hague (expect a demolition of Gordon Brown) and Boris Johnson.

Tories are ready for an Election: £10m in warchest.  200 candidates in key seats selected.  Manifesto drafted.  If an election is called next week the broadcasters have assured CCHQ that the Conference will receive full coverage - to balance the coverage already given to Labour and the LibDems.

Lady Thatcher: Won't be attending (and hasn't for a number of years).

Social action: As with last year, there will be a social action project.  Some derelict land will be reclaimed.

Comments

[Adam]

Good start! Lets hope everything goes well and runs smoothly and we give the impression that we are absolutely ready for a general election which we will fight to win.

[Nick]

Almost all the passes just being okayed by the police but not sent out is not good enough - there are people who applied for passes months ago who have not yet received them. As per last year, huge numbers - including the media - are going to have to queue in chaos for hours or perhaps days. This is ridiculously embarassing. No lessons have been learned from last year, and they can't even blame the police like they did in 2006.

[Editor]

I don't think that's going to happen, Nick. There will be a little bit of queue-ing but five minutes or so only, I'm told. We'll see...

[Former Conservative]

"Some derelict land will be reclaimed."

Will this be the home ground that natural Conservative supporters used to know, before the bulldozers moved in?

[Edison Smith]

More than 8,500 passes have been issued - the best attendance for five years.

That's excellent news.

[HF]

The attendance is excellent news for a place that is unattractive.

5 years ago was Bournemouth so it speaks volumes for the enthusiasm of the activists.

[Jonathan Sheppard]

Is it really wise to make the likes of Adam Boulton, Nick Robison and so on queue for passes though? Actually don't answer that!

[Nick]

I hope dearly that what you have been told is true, Editor. It would be especially bad if the media have to queue...

[basil]

To put it in context though - I think there were 20,000 passes issued at Labour Conference.

It will be interesting to see how many Exhibitors are there and how many are blue chip. That will be the real guide as to whether anybody believes we are a government in waiting.

[Londoner]

Will everyone please remember next week that careless talk costs seats? We need to demonstrate total unity and firmness of purpose - the possibility of 5 years of Brown should surely be enough to concentrate even the smallest of minds now, surely?

[Steve]

A lot of people I know haven't had their passes yet so they're leaving it pretty late!!

[dizzy]

Greatest of respect regarding passes. Fingerprint Events confirmed receipts of my hard copy forms and photos on July 12th. Yesterday they confirmed that two days ago my security check had cleared but that they had lost the photo I sent and the spare one too. Tomorrow I will be picking up my pass and having a photo taken.

I am not best impressed by a company that can get my forms and then take over two months to process them.

[Mr Angry]

"More than 8,500 passes have been issued - the best attendance for five years."

Ah but how many of those will actually attend? I have gone to conference every year for the last 9 years but this year, despite having coughed up and already received my pass, I am not going to be able to actually go.

[Jonathan Sheppard]

If there is any delay in the media getting their passes you could almost write the stories that will be written now. Next year perhaps they should pop them in the post?

[Tony Makara]

I really like the 'Change' theme. Thats exactly what our country needs, a complete change of direction. I'm looking forward to seeing speeches of substance and full of ideas for the future. The Labour conference had a sated and complacent look about it. So the Conservative conference must show hunger, anger and passion. Its time for change.

[Paul Kennedy]

Actually can somebody tell me why they have to be cleared by the police. Why should the police, in effect, approve our delegates. It is nothing at all to do with them.........is it?

[Matt Wright]

I have not received my pass,

Matt

[Disraeli]

It amazes me quite how many people on this site can find a cloud in every silver lining! That report sounds very positive. Fingers crossed that this coming week turns the Brownite tide.

[Anne-Marie]

I have not received my pass yet, but I phoned Fingerprint events this morning and they were VERY helpful, and said that I could pick it up from today in Blackpool, and that the office was open from 8am - 10pm.

As long as I don't need to queue for too long I'm fairly happy with that, although I don't mind waiting a bit longer if it means the press get theirs quickly!!!!

[Andrew Woodman]

If the passes are all ready for collection, then hopefully it should be fairly smooth as long as they have enough staff on. If it's just 3 people then we're in trouble!!

[Dick Wishart]

The important people such as my wife and I have received ours!

[Editor]

We can all rest easy now we've heard that news, Dick!

See you in Blackpool...

:-)

[Nick Young]

Forgive me if my memory is playing tricks on me at such a late hour, but wasn't 'It's time for change' the Labour slogan in 1992?