I hope David Cameron treats himself to a well earned glass of champagne today to celebrate his 43rd birthday, well out of the sight of the paparazzo’s prying telephoto lenses, of course.

That makes him a Libran, and I have it on good authority that his rising sign is in Virgo, which means he pays close attention to detail. A Conservative supporter at Manchester was telling me this as we waited for our trains at the railway station. She also knew where his moon and Venus was and his other astrological houses, but the sound of an approaching train drowned out this information before she jumped on her carriage.

There was certainly plenty of detail in his rousing speech yesterday, and I liked the personal emotion which went behind it. It came from the heart because he has suffered the devastating loss of a severely handicapped son, and can truly empathise with the suffering inflicted on Fiona Pilkington who killed herself and her handicapped daughter after being terrorised by a gang of feral kids.

These are kids with no parental control or positive role models, the kind which Conservatives want to turn around so they can look forward to future opportunities, instead of a life of crime, but must also face the consequences of their actions. Family life and support is something which many take for granted, but those kids without it most probably look on with envy. Restoring values and respect to our society is crucial to overcoming many of the ills in our communities.

I also liked David Cameron’s quirkly line, “We have got to stop treating adults like children, and children like adults.” How very true.

The speech can be read in full at this link.

*Dozens of fringe events compete for audiences at the conference on every subject imaginable – from the Chinese Embassy talking about the strategic partnership of China and Britain, a debate on skills and opportunities for the new workforce, or The Children’s Society promoting better relations between young people and adults, for example.

The tactics which organisers use to lure participants is by appealing to their hungry tummies and offering food, from breakfast and brunch, to lunch and canapes, or even something hot if you are lucky. Generous proportions of wine was served at all events and refreshments were provided by sponsors.

Even before arriving at the secure zone of the conference centre, activists and lobbyists thrust leaflets promoting their fringe events in our hands, and tried to tempt us with promises of food, plenty of food.

“Come to our event, we’ve got lots of good food,” they would plead.

It soon became clear that some hungry souls would walk from room to room when food was being served, help themselves to a plateful and then leave discreetly. The talk in the corridors wasn’t just about the best fringe event, but also where the best food was being served.

For me that was at a fascinating debated on dementia with the Alzheimer’s Society, Alzheimer’s Research Trust, Age Concern and Help the Aged (more on this in another post). We had salmon kebabs and healthy finger food, as well as a supply of cranberry juice – the only event this was served instead of wine.

The networking opportunities at the conference was fantastic, with everyone wanting to help each other and introduce you to fellow supporters, as well as catching up with the gossip about marginal seats, particularly those safe ones which are now available and much sought after.

*I was really impressed  by the large number of young people at this conference. Anyone who imagines the Conservative Party is still the stereotype blue-rinsed brigade have got it totally wrong. The young members I met were totally committed to helping their candidates and it was wonderful to meet the dozen or so vibrant students from York University who are supporting  our excellent York Outer candidate Julian Sturdy.

*I saw Chloe Smith a few times, our newest and youngest MP from Norwich North, and she is so impressive. She has delicate, elfin features and a natural grace and charm. I admire her poise and think how terrifying it must be for her in many ways to take on such a challenging new job, while at the same time feeling totally exhilarated and committed to her constituents. I have every confidence that she will grow into it and equal the achievements of her heroine, Gillian Shephard, Baroness Shephard of Northwold.

*There were so many party invitations too, and I managed three a night a couple of days (hence the lack of blogging), and even excelled myself at roller disco, an image which made my sons groan, especially as I passed on the chance of meeting a couple of their football heroes!

Oh well, there’s always next year!!

What were your thoughts about the speech?