"I'd rather walk on coals than go to Conservative conference" - Tory council leader (From Echo)

"I'd rather walk on coals than go to Conservative conference" - Southend Council Tory leader

2:00pm Thursday 18th October 2012 in News

THE Tory leader of Southend Council would rather have “walked over hot coals” than attended last week’s Conservative Party conference. In a tongue-in-cheek remark, Nigel Holdcroft said his “blisters were starting to heal” after rejecting the opportunity to meet up with party colleagues in Birmingham. The annual conference is attended by thousands of councillors and grassroots Tory supporters from across the UK. But Mr Holdcroft accused organisers of staging a drum-beating event designed to maximise publicity rather than plot out the party’s future. He said: “I have never been able to get excited about the thought of attending the conference which, in line with the other major parties, appears to have become increasingly stage-managed and more an opportunity to provide a public stage for our national colleagues and policies rather than a forum for future policy development. “I am sure that some find it interesting and a good opportunity to meet with a large number of party colleagues, but it is not for me.”