party conference – Page 6 – Slugger O'Toole

Looking back at Alliance’s conference … who were looking forward

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 24, 2011, 9:30 am | Readers 7

The basic mood of Saturday’s Alliance conference was upbeat. Very upbeat. Elected representatives, ordinary members and recent joiners alike were proud of their accomplishments in 2010, framing them as positive achievements rather than having beaten other parties or candidates. I didn’t hear a single person gloating about Peter Robinson’s loss in East Belfast or his wider family issues this time last year. About three hundred members turned up for conference. It’s perhaps a sign of the party’s confidence that they’re …

Harry Hamilton (Alliance)

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 22, 2011, 3:26 pm | Readers 227

The higher profile new members of the Alliance Party were today welcomed to the bosom of the conference at the Dunadry. David Ford named them in his speech, and seats had been reserved in the front row of the hall. I caught up with Harry Hamilton during the lunch break. He explained why he was drawn to Alliance and confirmed that he was willing to serve the party in the future if he was required. The official line is that …

Alliance Party Conference live #allconf

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 22, 2011, 10:30 am | Readers 33

The post has been updated with audio from most of the sessions during the day … and there’s one last post reflecting back on the conference mood, the party’s future and quick interviews with David Ford, Naomi Long and Andrew Muir. — After the award of prizes … … the remaining delegates debated (well, spoke in agreement of) two motions. Neither could be described as the party breaking new policy ground – though both do speak into important issues in …

Alliance Party Conference preview #allconf

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on January 21, 2011, 8:30 am | Readers 12

It’s the Alliance Party Conference on Saturday. Their agenda has still not been announced as it is being franticly reshuffled after the late confirmation that Fine Gael’s leader Enda Kenny is able to attend. This time last year, the likelihood that policing and justice would be devolved was much talked about at conference. Behind the scenes, Alliance’s Executive had already discussed how they might approach the new ministry and the potential for David Ford to grab the post. Alliance’s leader …

Looking back at the UUP

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on December 5, 2010, 10:50 am | Readers 10

UUP Assembly candidates

Tom Elliott is evolving. He’s more confident speaking than three months ago during the leadership campaign. He has a sense of timing, and avoids forced humour. When interviewed he gives brief answers that avoid waffle. Lots of people at conference described him as honest and genuine. And from within the party, there wasn’t a word said against him yesterday. At times, he appeared a lonely, shy figure, wandering around the emptying conference hall rather than forcing himself out into the …

The elephants in the #uupconf room (updated)

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on December 4, 2010, 12:23 pm | Readers 19

While Lord Craigavon got an mention as proceedings started this morning at the UUP conference, there are other absent friends who will not be toasted. The party chairman laid into the Westminster candidates who have deserted the UUP in recent weeks. Trevor Ringland, Paula Bradshaw and “Flash” Harry Hamilton are off the Christmas card list. The other elephant in the room is Lagan Valley activist John Lund. An anonymous complaint was lodged about comments he made on the Nolan show …

UUP Conference (updated) #uupconf

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on December 4, 2010, 10:29 am | Readers 47

UUP Assembly candidates

Updated with audio from throughout the day’s conference. Coverage of the conference begins at the bottom of the post.

UUP Conference preview #uupconf

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on December 2, 2010, 12:00 pm | Readers 13

In a break from tradition, the Ulster Unionist Party is following the example of Barcamp and organising this weekend’s conference as an un-conference. Delegates will register as normal and pick up their name badges on the way into the Ramada Hotel, but may be surprised to be given a pad of post-it notes and a pen too. During the short welcome session, party chairman David Campbell will encourage delegates to propose sessions based on policy areas or common constituency issues …

Who pays for party conferences? (Clue = taxpayers some of the time)

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 28, 2010, 10:45 pm | Readers 387

Close up of Translink table at DUP conference

Party conferences are expensive. Occupying the largest halls and rooms within hotels for 1–3 days over a weekend. Catering for hundreds of people. Looking modern and sophisticated with stages, sets, sound and video. But is paying for it? Many party members would say that they do. Their annual subscription to the party covers all kinds of costs. And the admission charge to attend the party conference (could be in the region of £10–25) covers their conference programme pack, food and …

DUP shifting towards the centre – that U-turn – and what Peter Robinson didn’t say in his speech

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 27, 2010, 10:58 pm | Readers 47

Some final thoughts on the DUP conference. Sure there was all of the buzz and razamataz of flag waving, jeering and clapping as well as the conservative morality. It was the DUP’s best-attended conference. The overflow car park overflowed – a local church that was running a craft fair and wasn’t impressed when their car park filled up with non-shoppers! There were cars parked in the hotel’s tennis courts! The men were well dressed and mostly wore ties. The younger …

DUP conference (updated)

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 27, 2010, 9:55 am | Readers 42

12:00 The delegates finally get to wave their flags and give a stand ovation and a half to Peter Robinson who struggled to get them to sit down so he can start his speech. You don’t need to take my word for it: just ask yourselves, is Northern Ireland better off now than it was twenty years ago? Investment is coming back, new jobs are being created and there’s a real future for our young people and a reason for …

Setting the unionist cat amongst the cultural pigeons: Nelson McCausland on why unionists ignore culture at their peril

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 26, 2010, 11:50 pm | Readers 156

Nelson McCausland speaking at his session at 2010 DUP Conference on Why unionists ignore culture at their peril

The Gransha Suite at La Mon Hotel had obviously been packed with DUP Conference delegates for the previous session on Challenges in Policing when I eventually arrived earlier this evening. PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott was still giving a few interviews to the press while a Lambeg Drum was being set up on the other side of the stage. Nelson McCausland was up next, addressing DUP delegates as a dedicated follower of culture and MLA, rather than as Minister for …

DUP Conference Preview – moving forward or staying in the same place?

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 26, 2010, 8:00 am | Readers 19

Since their last party conference, the DUP has had a roller-coaster of a year. In the first few months of 2010 it looked like they’d been turned upside down and had any loose change shaken out of their pockets as scandal-ridden Iris Robinson abruptly retired from public life, Peter Robinson temporarily stepped back from office, land deals lingered in the headlines, mud was thrown at high profile MPs, and the party suffered the loss of their East Belfast seat at …

TUV conference – the bits you may not read in Monday’s papers

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 13, 2010, 9:12 pm | Readers 41

Over in Cookstown the TUV clan were meeting for their annual party conference. For those of us not there, I’ve extracted some of the pithy portions below from Jim Allister’s leader’s speech, but for those unwilling to read on, the statutory Wordle summarises what he said. We may not have had the year we would have liked, or that your hard work and that of all our candidates deserved, but TUV is here and here to stay, because the cause …

TUV Conference preview – evolving yet bringing guns back into politics

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 12, 2010, 6:00 pm | Readers 36

The TUV went remarkably quiet after the May 2010 Westminster elections. However, this weekend, party members will be converging in the Royal Hotel in Cookstown for their party conference. Outside the party, it wasn’t terribly well advertised. While I received a belated invitation last week, I’m not free to attend. Not sure if anyone from Slugger will be along? Printing out their conference programme used up more red and blue ink that I’d bargained for. There’s still the old-fashioned use …

SDLP Conference (updated with a couple of interviews)

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 6, 2010, 12:00 pm | Readers 24

I caught up with SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie on this morning just after she had finished rehearsing her leaders speech in the empty hall. 1.30pm Having escaped from the conference to the side of a humid swimming pool, I reflect that the Ramada Hotel wasn’t anywhere near as well attended as their February conference in Newcastle. It does seem strange that with the election in May, the SDLP didn’t just postpone again until February and use the conference as a …

McGlone rallies the faithful at opening night of SDLP conference

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 6, 2010, 7:30 am | Readers 6

There was relatively little Twitter traffic from the SDLP conference on Friday night. This could just point to the party being gathered together and meeting face-to-face. But given the opportunity for putting out positive messages about their party’s thinking and plans, the low level of news might just point to a much smaller gathering than the masses who turned up for February’s leadership election conference weekend. In his Friday night speech, SDLP deputy leader and director of elections Patsy McGlone …

SDLP Conference Preview

Alan Meban (Alan in Belfast) on November 5, 2010, 8:30 am | Readers 16

Margaret Ritchie SDLP leadership campaign promotional poster - with the ink running in the Newcastle rain

I’ve found my thick pack of papers from February’s SDLP conference in the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle and the memories are flooding back. Right in the heart of Margaret Ritchie’s rain-swept South Down constituency, she wrestled the leadership of the party from the clutches of Alasdair McDonnell. Lamp posts were adorned with water-damaged posters. Inside the hotel, there was the air of an Ideal Home Exhibition with badges and stickers being handed out everywhere you went. … the candidates’ …