Conference Diary - Saturday

Saturday is the day for real hacks to get to conference - the kind of people who think an afternoon compositing contemporary resolutions followed by an evening at the General Federation of Trades Unions reception is a great way to spend 50% of their weekend. So I was there.

First observations:

- Delegates are outnumbered by deputy leadership candidates and their attendant retinues of Special Advisers. If there is any cabinet member not running for deputy leader could they identify themselves?
- Everyone is being terribly nice to each other and wildly enthusiastic everytime the PM walks into a reception.
- His (the PM's) voice cracked and he sounded like he was going to have a cry when he got to the end of his speech at the London Region and started to talk about the Party looking outwards not inwards.
- The discussion about leadership candidates amongst ordinary delegates/activists is refreshingly dispassionate and high-minded - most people are not that interested in the personalties/politicking and seem to be reserving judgement until we know m0re about the policies and potential electoral impact of the (possible) runners and riders.
- The white wine in the receptions at the Midland Hotel is, mercifully, chilled, rather than the lukewarm temperature normally served at equivalent hotels in Brighton and Blackpool. But it's still chardonnay. Yuck!
- Manchester is very, very rainy compared to London where it was still summer when I left at 10am yesterday.