Party conferences

Lots of comment (Politico, IfG, etc.) on the counter-intuitive nature of party conferences: Tories, after a historically-awful defeat, optimistic and energised; Labour, finally in power, fractious and defensive. You might think it would be the other way around. But it makes sense. After the cognitive dissonance of the last 14 years it must be a relief to just do the fantasy politics without the stress of trying to match it to reality. And accepting responsibility for managing the intractable structural and cultural problems that have accrued over the last decade and a half, and realising you’re not equal to them – that’s enough to make anyone nervous.