As you know, if you read my blog regularly or are an ultrasound Conservative, I have been to the YBF conference. Sound!
Unless you are accepting a knighthood from the Queen, you must make sure you are at Churchill College with Donal Blaney and YBF chums for next years conference. The YBF conference is arguably better than the Tory Party one, there is certainly more debate and better food. I really enjoyed YBF and so did everyone else in the NUCA contingent.
So what exactly happened you may ask? Well that would be telling because YBF operates under the Chatham House rule, in other words I cannot relate who said what etc. . However, I have special permission from Mr Donal Blaney to say what did happen and tell you all the fun events (and we're not skipping on the 'sound', 'shame' and 'resign').
The conference kicked off with a great speech, as ever, by the one and only Peter Botting. It really inspired us all to become the revolutionaries he encouraged.
Indeed we were inspired very much by the Botting's revolutionary tweet as he said he would randomly pick out of the people who retweeted the above comment one person who he would give a bottle of something special. Needless to say the Botting revolution was more successful than the Brand one.
Another great discussion of the day was about the moral case to lower taxes. Sound! In my opinion people should keep as much as their money as possible, especially if they have low or middling incomes. Why should we take money off people when it effects their lives noticeably? I was not the only person to believe this.
Never forget this, as was pointed out on the day.
During Friday evening we went to the Thatcher and Churchill archives in the college library. It was great to see documents which made such an impact on the world, for example the original copy of Churchill's Finest Hour speech. There was also a letter sent by Margaret Thatcher replying to a young boy who said he believed her to be a good person like Jesus.
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| In the Thatcher and Churchill archives. |
This tour was universally popular and the YBF crew must be greatly congratulated for there organisation of this.
Following this there was a slap up meal to commemorate the passing of Eric Forth MP, a conviction politician who never backed down from the defence of freedom. Eric Forth MP was a great supporter of YBF in the early days so I am sure, looking down from up above, he would be pleased to see how many people are being taught by YBF to stand up for their values.
At the dinner Jennifer Salisbury Jones, of Bristol, gin and NUS leaving fame, won the Eric Forth Memorial award for her campaign for Bristol Uni to leave the NUS. JSJ has done so well that she got elected to be the NUS rep for the university; I thus think the award is pretty deserved. I think we're all waiting with anticipation for a share of the £50,000 amount of gin that Jenny promised.
The night however was young and so we had the odd refreshments. It was great fun, except the hour ramble around Cambridge David Cowan led me on so we could find so more alcohol after the bar had closed. Resign! But this tweet made us all a lot happier.
Hear Hear! Sound!
The night definitely had its effects on everyone in the morning too.
But we had a really great speaker to cure all our hangovers. Andrew Macleod, fellow Aussie, ex Labour member and former manager at the UN talked to us about the trade vs aid debate. Companies are the ones investing most into the lives of the poorest in the world and doing so much great work. Furthermore companies measure by results and are more effectively using their money to get people jobs and a better life with no poverty. We should be backing 'development investment' not 'development aid'. In my opinion this was the best speech of the conference.
There were other great speakers up to lunchtime with Ian Dale conducting a media training session, Jonathan Isaby who now heads up the Tax Payers Alliance (Sound), and Charlotte Vere who gave a great debate about women in the Conservative Party.
More great speakers were still to come however. The post lunch slot was filled by Robert Halfon MP who inspired us by talking about how we should do to things in the Conservative Party. Firstly, frame our arguments in a language ordinary people can understand to show conservative policies are helping them. Second, we must rename the Conservative Party they Workers Party to accurately portray what our party stands for. Thirdly, take the language of the Left to empathise with people. Rob also pointed out that the Smurfs are conservatives and not Marxists, Pappa Smurf is blue after all.
Comrade Steve Baker then followed to talk to us about sound money. Ultra-Sound!.
Steve really emphasised the problems we're facing in the West. Our economy, despite Gideon trying to help, isn't stopping us from having a 800% predicted national debt in 2040. I would rather have a 1% Conservative government than a 100% Labour one but we're still not doing enough. Freedom is at peril.
Chloe Smith then spoke to us all about how the Conservatives need to engage with young people, something that I think is very important. Chloe talked much about how jobs and speaking to young people is the way forward. No one was brave enough to mention Newsnight to her however.
There were at this time a complaint however, not about the speakers but the views of the stage. This complaint came from NUCA's very tall freshers rep Sam Armstrong on Twitter. Apparently this near 6 foot chap couldn't see past me, although I am 5 foot 4 inches. Perhaps it may be something to do with the fact Sam was rolling around in the seat above me in agony from the night before?
A tub thumping right wing speech was then heard from Mallory Factor. Mr Factor doesn't like the democrats and is a great freedom lover who really got the Yankees going at the conference. shouts of U-S-A were heard quite loudly for a good while.
We then had a talk that really interested #ThingsElliottSays talking about social media and blogging. It was a very good debate but I cannot help thinking some people were distracted.
But onto the second dinner, the Margaret Thatcher banquet. Some people got ready for this in an unusual way.
The dinner started very well with a smashing grace from Robert Halfon MP.
But by far the best bit of the meal was Connor Burns' speech; the best I have heard from him. There is still a moral crusade to bring about classical liberalism and its clear Connor Burns still has this passionate belief. Sound!
Many enjoyed Connor Burns' speech so much that they play Connor Burns bingo.
The meal also contained a few surprises. The biggest of the evening was not the great speeches but the food. I'm sure my sea bass was pink and salmon flavoured. Donal Blaney also was surprised by a huge YBF cake with a sparkling candle being wheeled out to celebrate 10 years of the Young Britons Foundation. All we could say to that was 10 more years.
By far the least surprising event was Oliver Cooper being awarded the Dolphin prize for ultra-soundness. Colonel Cooper is most definitely the first Conservative in charge of CF in many years.
The main prize was still to be announced however, and it was who had won Peter Botting's revolutionary prize. By shear luck the winner was NUCA's own Alex Bright. I hope he saves the expensive wine he received for a party with me in Nottingham. Hint, hint Brighty.
But the night, like the one before was still young, and plots, parties and some solid drinking still needed to take place.
Still everyone was up the next day for another round of speeches.
The Sunday started off with a foreign policy talk on Putin and his Russia. I was very interested by this as the sad thing seems to be that Russia is returning to the bad old days back in the USSR. Thanks goes to Daniel Hamilton who gave this excellent discussion.
But then Ukiper (Shame), Alderman and YBF organiser (Resign) Matt Richardson said something disgusting. Let's just say it involved a big white telephone.
Highlight of the last day was Rory Broomfield from the Freedom Association. This wasn't because of anything he said though. I think you may have pulled Rory.
But there was also love for another YBFer.
Last minute controversy also appeared at the conference with Robert Smith backing Stalin. NUCA's Robert Smith is known for taking up some very strange positions . At the
#ThatcherDeabte last academic year Robert clapped for the proposition of this house regrets Mrs Thatcher. Shame!
But sadly all good things must come to an end. The conference finished at 2:30. My thanks goes to Donal Blaney and his tremendous team for an excellent #YBFX and I hope that #YBFXI is just as good if not better. If you're a conservative make sure you come to the YBF conference, if not you will miss the greatest weekend of the year.
So after a quick meal at KFC with the Colonel.
We headed back home. We were all very tired.
But some people spent their time productively on the train home.
As a last point I'm sorry this post has taken 3 days to do. I had to do some other things.
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