Party conferences articles

With Parliament in recess for party conference season, the action has largely taken place away from Westminster this week. Indeed, many of our leading politicians have used the time to get some travelling done. Theresa May has been in the US and given her first address to the UN General Assembly. Reflecting on the unprecedentedRead more

Conservative party members will gather in Manchester from Sunday for their annual conference. In part, it will be an opportunity for the party to celebrate its return to government – this time as a majority party. But the conference will also give the Conservatives an opportunity to set the political agenda for the rest ofRead more

If Oscar Wilde was right, and the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about, then it’s a truth that has come to define the Liberal Democrats over the past four and a half years. As a protest party handed the keys to Government in 2010, they have been accused ofRead more

Conservative conference this week has been much more upbeat than Labour’s of last. The fringe meetings, exhibition hall and bars have been pervaded with a sense of optimism and bullishness about the Conservative’s chances next year. It’s as if, in the face of adversity (UKIP defections, Newmark, questions over Europe, a stubborn second place inRead more

Ed Miliband’s speech to Labour party conference this afternoon was 70 minutes long and at times, a strange experience to listen to. His tendency to make points by drawing on references to meetings with ‘normal people’ – Rosie, Xiomara, Gareth and more – is becoming slightly tedious.  At worst, it just reminds one of theRead more

You had to pity Ed Balls yesterday. It was his big day of Labour conference – he’d been up with the lark touring the interview studios, he’d delivered his major speech on the conference floor, and he was busy long into the night speaking at receptions and fringe meetings. His big news – that aRead more