A Political First
Posted: Friday 09 October, 2009
Pete Goold
It's been a really strange week, having attended my first political conference (the Conservative Conference, in Manchester).
I was there with and to support Perspective at a fringe event, which was a panel that included: Edward Garnier MP (the new Shadow Attorney General), the CEO of St Giles Trust, Jonathan Aitken and Perspective's Chairman Jim Davis, who were collectively discussing a recent and massively successful project which reduced recidivism rates from 35% to 6.5% over a six month trial period.
The panel was a genuinely interesting experience - not least because of the differing points of view on the subject of how training can significantly reduce re-offending.
Moreover the conference itself was a really eye-opening experience, not having attended a major political event previously. The strange thing was that it was quite closely akin to a standard conference - yet a few subtle differences seemed to make the whole event seem somehow askew. The hall was filled with a bizarre and disparate collection of lobbyists pursuing their specific agendas (Christian Friends of Conservatism, Turkish Friends of Conservatism, Pro-Fur, etc) yet, their stands were literally next to stalls from Marks & Spencer, Crombie and Harvey Nichols.
We bumped into Jeremy Paxman leaning against a stand offering 'Gordon Brown's Porky Pies' (recommended donation: 20p+). John Pienaar and Nick Robinson were never more than a few feet away from the centre of things at any time.
The strangest aspect for me was the fact that so many of the attendees were older white men yet seemed to be accompanied by attractive younger women, which seemed to be a running trend. Most odd - but fairly easy to explain away i guess as I can certainly now understand the intoxication of proximity to the political hub.
Aside from the panel and meeting the aforementioned politicians, my personal highlight was the fact that the 'Tory Memorabilia' stand was selling Tony Blair 'demon-eyes' poster mugs and such-like, without the slightest hint of irony.
Also, the bizarre goings on of Bono and the subsequent web reaction can hardly go unmentioned.
Many thanks to Mike Hepburn, a public affairs specialist who heads up a specialist cnsultancy in this area - and our guide for the conference.
As anyone that knows me will I'm sure already know, based on the last few days I suspect I'm not cut out for politics.