Chancellor George Osborne, Home Secretary Theresa May, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, Chief Whip Michael Gove and business minister Matt Hancock were among the throng at the Tory conference drinks party thrown by Rupert Murdoch’s News UK in Birmingham last night, with cocktails courtesy of Footsie drinks giant Diageo.
Sun editor David Dinsmore joked that the best cocktail was the Fracking Hell — a suitably blue mix of Smirnoff vodka with Blue Curaçao and lemon. “It’s certainly popular with us,” said Dinsmore, whose ultimate boss is keen on fracking.
But he prompted a few groans when he urged guests including LBC presenter Nick Ferrari and blogger Guido Fawkes “do be careful” and “not to be Reckless” — a reference to the shock weekend resignation of Brooks Newmark over his sexting scandal and the defection to Ukip of fellow Tory MP Mark Reckless.
* Diageo’s corporate social responsibility team was eager to prove it isn’t that boozy. A leaflet for Tory conference-goers explained that “soft-drink ‘spacers’ between drinks can help pace an evening” and suggested “avoid top-ups so you can keep track of your alcohol intake”. Diageo’s bar staff weren’t total killjoys, as the drinks list included a Eurosceptic-pleasing Juncker Junket, named after the European Commission President, which was a mix of Don Julio Reposado tequila, Grand Marnier and lime. Only two units per glass, officer!
* Tesco sponsored the most unfortunately named panel of the conference: “How can UK Plc innovate to help Britain win the global race?” Er, how about not over-stating your profits by £250 million? A good question for panel chair Kamal Ahmed, the BBC business editor, to ask when he is doing his day job…
* The Institute of Economic Affairs hosted a lively debate on whether advertising is over-regulated, with MPs John Whittingdale and John Redwood and British Heart Foundation boss Simon Gillespie, who is keen to see more responsible ads for high fat, salt and sugary (HFSS) foods because they are bad for the heart. But a mischievous Tory in the audience asked Gillespie if it had been responsible for a charity like the BHF to recruit Vinnie Jones for its ads when he has a 1998 conviction for assault? Ouch.
Golf fan Gilbert keeps a clear head
Martin Gilbert must have been ruing the timing of Aberdeen Asset Management’s latest trading update as he watched Jamie Donaldson clinch victory for Europe over the US in the Ryder Cup on Sunday.
The golf-loving Scot was at Gleneagles for the tournament but had to get up early on Monday for the fund manager’s third-quarter results. City Spy can vouch for the fact that Gilbert was not suffering after-effects from any celebrations, unlike Donaldson who — the morning after — admitted the victory hadn’t sunk in because he was “still drunk”.
I built the Shard and it’s magic, says Sellar
To The Shard and Vinopolis for an evening of Magic with Dynamo, organised by Harold Tillman in aid of Patrons of Variety, the new arm of the Variety children’s charity, aimed at reaching younger donors.
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Dynamo’s tricks, coupled with the view from The Shard, followed by excellent food and wine at Vinopolis made for a sumptuous evening. Irvine Sellar, property veteran and developer of The Shard, made a touching speech which drew appreciative nods from a heavily business audience.
“It’s been a 14-year journey,” said Sellar. “I told a sceptical industry about The Shard and no one believed me. I said I’d get it financed and no one thought I’d get it financed. I said I’d build it and no one thought I’d build it.
“Here we are, it’s built and attracting one million visitors a year — Dynamo, you’re not the only magician in this building tonight.”
EX-SAS man Mike Gooley must be pleased he dared to start the Trailfinders travel operation. He has certainly won, with the 2013-14 results showing pre-tax profits up 45% at £26.6 million. Gooley, 77, sole shareholder of the £300 million business, must be thinking of the future. No doubt the private-equity boys would like to grab Trailfinders. If they do, will Gooley be willing to up his recent £500,000 donation to the Tories?
