David Cameron’s Conference Speech

If you missed the speech or want to find out how it's been received here are some pointers.

David Cameron’s Conference Speech

The pressure was on Cameron, as the final leader to address his conference, after both Clegg and Miliband had set out strongly argued new directions for their parties – Clegg for the LDs to be one of the three parties of government in a new world of coalition politics and Miliband stealing Tory clothes with his ‘One Nation’ Labour.

Cameron’s speech was inevitably different as he alone of the three faces the challenges of being Prime Minister. He made the case for the government’s economic plans and defended his record. In any other year it would have been seen as a good speech, but it lacked the clarity and overarching message of the other two. However, there were some good themes: his slogan of an ‘aspirant nation’ and his idea that he was in office not to defend privilege but to spread it, good Conservative ideas.

Where to start with this morning’s media coverage?

Newsnight had some good clips and an interesting discussion amongst three observers about his speech and how it stood alongside Clegg and Miliband’s.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01nby9f/Newsnight_10_10_2012/

Jonathan Freedland in ‘The Guardian’ gives a report on the speech and places it alongside the other two.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/oct/10/david-cameron-speech-ed-miliband

Peter Oborne in ‘The Daily Telegraph’ is positive about the speech, although he has not often been a Cameron fan:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/david-cameron/9598946/David-Cameron-has-shown-why-the-Tories-are-the-truly-moral-party.html

Back in ‘The Guardian’ Decca Aitkenhead is more damning and questions whether Cameron’s attempts to change the image of the party in opposition are now being undone.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/oct/10/conservative-conference-return-nasty-party

For those of you who are keeping a scrapbook of political news, or being asked by your teachers to compare different points of view on political stories the Oborne article and one of those from the Guardian would be ideal material.