Just back from the Conservative party conference in Manchester.
There was no Forest event this year which was due partly to the late confirmation that the conference was going ahead.
Another factor was the unavailability of Great John Street Hotel whose heated rooftop terrace had been the location for Forest drinks parties in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
The hotel is currently closed for refurbishment and won’t re-open until next year and as far as I’m concerned … no smoking terrace, no party.
I can however reveal that we asked ConservativeHome how much it would cost to host a panel discussion on tobacco control in their conference marquee and we were quoted £16,000.
That’s almost double our budget for a drinks party - with free food and drink - for 150 people!!
Thanks but no thanks.
So instead of hosting a Forest event I went to a handful of meetings organised by other groups.
One, on Monday afternoon, was hosted by the Adam Smith Institute and was called 'The Golden Opportunity: How Britain can embrace tobacco harm reduction'.
My main complaint, if that’s not too strong a word, is that the views of the four panellists (and the ASI's Daniel Pryor who was chairing the event) were broadly similar or at least compatible which made for a slightly dull event.
To be fair I was told by several people that this was a problem at other events too.
Diverse opinions were noticeable by their absence with speakers pretty much singing from the same hymn sheet whilst preaching to the converted so there was almost no argument or debate.
Anyway, my question to the ASI's panel was:
The Government has set itself the target of making England 'smoke free' by 2030. Given that many adults still enjoy smoking and don't want to quit, is a 'smoke free' England actually desirable let alone achievable and, if you believe that a 'smoke free' England is desirable, how far would you go to achieve it?
The person I hoped would address it – because it was aimed partly at her – was Louise Ross, acting chair of the New Nicotine Alliance and one of the anti-smoking activists behind last year's Quit for Covid campaign.
Instead Louise chose not to respond ergo there was no real discussion.
The same issue (panellists in broad agreement) befell another fringe meeting, ‘No To The Nanny State’ hosted by Blue Collar Conservatives, with all seven speakers vehemently opposed to the ‘nanny state’.
Actually it was more of a rally than a debate and the atmosphere was more raucous than any other fringe event I attended, helped no doubt by the fact that it took place in a pub.
It wasn’t a particularly large space but the first floor function room had its own bar so people could buy a drink before and during the meeting. And they did!
With the exception of a few seats at the back of the room the event was literally ‘standing room only’ but if you didn’t mind being on your feet in a crowded room it certainly created a bit of a buzz.
The seven speakers included Jacob Rees-Mogg, David Davis, Philip Davies and Claire Fox (now Baroness Fox) who were introduced by a slightly over-excited compère but there was a neat twist.
Like a boxer entering the ring they appeared, one at a time, and had to make their way through the throng to take their seat on stage.
Jacob Rees-Mogg got the loudest cheers and applause but everyone got a good welcome and it created a bit of excitement which is almost unheard of at most fringe events.
Thankfully all the ‘speeches’ were quite short and the meeting progressed at pace towards a Q&A session.
That was the moment I left because I had stood long enough (I arrived 30 minutes early as requested) and latecomers had made the room even more crowded.
I had seen enough however to warm to both the event and Blue Collar Conservatives. Outside the secure zone 'No To The Nanny State' had a very different vibe to the events that were taking place inside the main conference area.
My only negative observation is that the term 'nanny state' appears to be increasingly ill-defined and I sense that some people are only using it to promote their own hobby horse (opposition to vaccine passports, for example, or any form of lockdown).
One MP on the panel – who I shall write about in a separate post – must have a particular definition of 'nanny state' because here's a written parliamentary question he submitted on December 30, 2020:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals (a) to implement the Government's commitment to make England smokefree by 2030 and (b) as part of the Government's next Tobacco Control Plan; and what the timetable will be for bringing forward any such legislative proposals.
Sounds like he's more than happy for smoking to be eradicated by big government yet he clearly thinks he's an opponent of the nanny state!
Other observations on CPC21:
Face masks were almost completely absent, even in the most crowded indoor areas where you could hardly move.
In comparison I was told that at the Labour and Lib Dem conferences delegates were split fairly evenly with around 50 per cent wearing masks indoors.
Each to their own, I say, but although I have never been a member of the Conservative party I like the fact that many of their active members seem to have a less regulated, more laissez faire, attitude to life.
(Sadly that is not always reflected by Conservative politicians or policies.)
It did however occur to me more than once that if I was going to get Covid it would be at CPC21! (I'll let you know if I develop any symptoms.)
Finally, I was driving home yesterday when Boris gave his speech so I listened to it on the radio.
I have to say I enjoyed it enormously. Critics are complaining that it was short on policy and the Adam Smith Institute has dismissed it as "vacuous and economically illiterate" but that misses the point of the speech.
Boris is by nature an optimist (just what we need in Number 10 at the moment) and the speech was aimed not at economists or academics or think tanks but at the Tory party members in the room and the wider public who aren’t obsessed with politics or economics and just want cheering up.
That is exactly what Boris did, unlike Kier Starmer at the Labour conference the previous week, and his joke-fuelled speech delivered optimism and humour in spades.
The detail can come later but those criticising his speech seem to me to be out of touch with public opinion. Many of them exist in a Westminster bubble. Like the capital-centric media perhaps they should get out of London more often and speak to more people in the 'real' world.
Funnily enough, wandering through the conference centre on Monday I was waylaid by the young Conservative commentator Darren Grimes who was recording soundbites for his Reasoned UK website.
Darren was asking delegates and party members 'What does Boris stand for?'. I couldn't answer that question because like many people I'm currently a bit unsure, but I did stand up for him.
My full response was edited so what you don't hear is me congratulating Boris on achieving what no-one else was able to achieve – a meaningful Brexit.
That, for me, puts him in credit if not for life then for several years and he could do just about anything during this parliament and I would still support him.
That credit may run out but I have no time for those critics and fair-weather friends who have the knife out for him and would gladly see him replaced as party leader and PM.
Boris is flawed, we all know that, but he deserves a full parliament in office before we reach judgement on his abilities as PM.
Condemning him as "vacuous and economically illiterate" may get you a front page headline in the Guardian but it sums up the anti-populist snobbery that is as prevalent on the right as it is on the left.
I also believe that loyalty is as important in politics as it is in life and Boris deserves better from his erstwhile political 'friends' who celebrated his Brexit achievement as little as 20 months ago.
PS. You can watch Darren Grimes' video here.
Above: View from the bar at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel; below: full house at Blue Collar Conservatives' 'No To The Nanny State' fringe event
