Taking Liberties

Back home, I have one final reflection on this week's conference: to win a general election a party has to be hungry for power. The Conservatives may have been united - thanks to Gordon Brown - by talk of an election, but hungry for power? I think not.

What struck me - and others - as we sat drinking late into the night, was how comfortable the Tories seem to be in opposition. Nothing, it seemed, could disrupt their general good humour. In the bars and restaurants (the best litmus test), I don't recall a single person expressing anger or even resentment towards the present government.

The good news, for the Conservatives, is that there is a younger generation of twentysomethings coming through (many of whom were at the Forest/Free Society reception), but they're not yet ready for government. At present, they're far too busy having fun.

Personally, if I was the prime minister, I'd call an election now. Why wait? The Tories are once again enjoying themselves, but either they don't believe they can win the next election, or they don't want to - not really, not yet. Govern the country? Who wants the responsibility?

I don't want to rain on David Cameron's parade, but let's get things in perspective. Yes, it was a good speech but it wasn't a great speech. It certainly wasn't a speech that will convince millions of people to vote Conservative.

I still don't know what DC stands for or why I should vote for him. Is he a social liberal? An economic liberal? A mixture of the two? What, exactly, does he represent? I'm damned if I know.

I began the week vowing not to vote for any party, should there be an election this year. Nothing has changed. C'mon, David. If you really want people like me to vote for your party, come off the fence and stand up for individual liberties, the sort that have been increasingly eroded in recent years.

Unfortunately, given your background, I suspect you are a patrician politician who means well but is essentially paternalistic, so I'm not holding my breath - which is a pity, because this is one area where you could really put clear water between the Tories and obsessive, nanny state tendencies of the present government.

Conservative party conference, Blackpool
Last night's Forest/Free Society reception was a great success. Difficult to estimate numbers but the room was full - both inside and outside on the smoker-friendly balcony - so there must have been at least 200 people. Better event (I think) than Bournemouth although we probably had a higher profile at the Labour conference where we had two days to sell the event.

Last night's event was certainly the livelier of the two - more of a party than a reception. Great atmosphere and a very supportive crowd who cheered all the speakers and stayed long after the event had officially finished. We abandoned the more sophisticated, laidback jazz of Bournemouth and really went for it, pianist Matt Black pounding out a string of uptempo rock classics. ('Bat Out Of Hell' went down particularly well.)

This time we had three speakers - Roger Helmer MEP, rebel publican Hamish Howitt, and former MSP Brian Monteith (above, with Yours Truly on the left). All three spoke really well and provoked loud applause. On a less serious note, we then challenged guests to beat the 80 bottles of champagne consumed by guests at the Forest/Free Society event in Bournemouth - which I think they did. Thankfully I haven't seen the bill (yet).

To Blackpool for the Conservative party conference where, tomorrow night, we're hosting the second of our party conference receptions.

By all accounts, this is the last time any of the major parties will hold their conference in this part of Lancashire. The only surprise is that the Tories have come back for one last hurrah.

My first experience of Blackpool was as a wide-eyed teenager. I'll never forget my first sight of the colourful trams, the famous Illuminations, and - the most vivid memory of all - the Pleasure Beach with its terrifying rollercoasters!

Today, Blackpool has far less appeal. Much has been written about the hotels, the crumbling buildings and concrete promenade that hark back to a different age - and, sadly, it's all true. No-one in their right mind would come here for a holiday, far less a 21st century party political conference. What were the Conservatives thinking?!!

Last night's reception in the main lounge of the Royal Bath Hotel (left) went pretty well. Numbers were OK (ie we weren't embarrassed) even though the Foreign Secretary was being interviewed by the Observer in the room next door (to a full house) and Alastair Campbell was conducting his own meeting in the main ballroom 50 yards down the corridor.

A torrential downpour in the afternoon could have spelled disaster but come the evening the sun was shining again so - for those who chose to eat, drink and smoke outside in the garden - it was quite pleasant. On the other hand, it meant that there were - in effect - two parties taking place, which doesn't help. Still, it didn't stop people drinking. We ordered 40 bottles of champagne. Thanks to our guests (champagne socialists?) we eventually got through 80.

The theme of the evening was how the nanny state is being replaced by the bully state. I said a few words along these lines, and then introduced special guest Paul Toole. Paul and his partner Chris Elliott have - bravely, in my opinion - stuck their heads above the parapet and organised two marches in protest against the smoking ban. The first was in Wells, Somerset, where they live; the second was in Glastonbury. Next month they are taking to the streets again, this time in Bristol.

I was struck, recently, by something Paul had written. Essentially, he pointed out that, as a gay man, he had experienced discrimination and intolerance. Now, just as society is becoming more tolerant of the gay community, he is experiencing similar discrimination and intolerance because he's a smoker. I asked him to make this point and he did so with some passion. We need more people like Chris and Paul to stand up and be counted. I am delighted they were able to come.

Unless you're Alastair Campbell or the Foreign Secretary, fringe events don't sell themselves. Today is D-Day for the Forest/Free Society reception at the Labour party conference so as well as handing out flyers to delegates, we have recruited three local thespians to dress up as nannies (nanny state - geddit?) and strut their stuff outside the conference centre. Like The Sun's double-decker bus (see below), the gag seems work. It attracts attention and makes people smile.

Adding to the surreal nature of the day, my colleague Sarah and I spend much of the day wrestling with a large bunch of balloons (featuring our 'nanny state' logo, obviously) which we drag from one location to another. Every so often a balloon snags on something - and bursts, making a noise that sounds alarmingly like a shotgun.

With armed policemen on every corner, this is not perhaps the cleverest PR stunt we've ever pulled. But it works. A combination of flyers, men dressed as Mary Poppins, and helium-filled balloons seems to have done the trick. After two days there seem to be very few delegates - including government ministers - who are not aware that Forest is in town. We've got to be happy with that.