"I always have a lot of complaints, which I used to think were all different but in fact boiled down to the same thing: this pantomime doesn't mean anything. The leader makes his or her speech, the commentariat falls upon it, more often than not declaring it to have saved them from whatever surge of unpopularity they were engulfed in the week before, and to anyone half normal, reality simply continues, undisturbed."
"if we think we're in a world where a speech will make a difference, even to public perception, let alone to livelihoods, we're dreaming. Around the edges of that, though, there were always things to discover. If you went to the Conservative party conference in 2014, you would probably have been less surprised by their general election victory the following year, when all the pollsters were predicting another hung parliament the members had a spring in their step, the smart, politically neu"
Party conferences function as pantomimes and seldom alter public perception, policy, or material conditions. Leaders’ speeches prompt intense media attention but rarely change political fortunes or address underlying issues like the cost-of-living crisis. Surface anecdotes and crafted personal narratives do not reliably increase relatability or charisma. Occasional crises at conferences produce memorable lampooning but often reflect deeper political vulnerability. Some conference atmospheres, however, can presage electoral momentum when membership mood aligns with broader campaign strength. Overall, conferences create spectacle and temporary commentary rather than substantive solutions or durable shifts in public mood.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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