The Tories must become the party of business again

At major sports matches, there is the main event, then sometimes they invite their reserve or junior sides to compete.

- CHRIS BLACKHURST

There's a bit of a kickabout for which the bulk of the crowd doesn't hang around. They do the same in racing, where a once high-flying pop band, now fallen on harder times, will come on after the final race.

That is how it feels with the Tory conference, which starts tomorrow in Manchester. The heavyweights have been and gone. The Conservative gathering is going ahead while everyone else has packed up and left, or at least paying them scant attention.

It says much about the party’s plight that a once great organisation is so reduced. This week has been about the intensifying rivalry of the big beasts of British politics - Labour and Reform UK. The Tories scarcely rate a mention, such has been their rapid decline. The Conservatives scarcely get a look-in; such has been their decline. Starmer versus Nigel Farage is the head-to-head now.

Not that the Tory high command is admitting as much. Their conference brochure is brimming with enthusiasm and events, the fringe is not depleted, corporate names and sponsors still abound. Attendance is down, but that is also to be expected. Going to conference is an expensive affair these days, with some hotels unable to resist putting up their prices. Delegates who pay for themselves understandably baulk at the cost, while those who cover their staff expenses query the tangible benefit.