Would you buy a policy from these people?

Party conferences are excruciatingly embarrassing events for the hierarchy: however much they charge (the Tories paid around £800 each including accommodation etc), they can't keep away the nutters, loons and loudmouths who make up the actual membership. And as membership declines, these people become more prominent - though not important: the Tory Party has never been democratic, while the other parties are doing their best to keep decision-making away from members, especially at conference.

For instance, these two chaps spotted at the Tory conference this week scream everything about their Party that the leadership is vainly denying: that they're all spoiled rich toffs with no understanding of the electorate's daily lives:

I believe the term for these chaps is 'cad'.

Meanwhile, how's this for a national dismissal?

'…you had better give up hope of books from England, for they care very little for them here'. 

(Poggio Bracciolini, 1420)

Apart from having a government which is gleefully closing libraries, I don't think it's true any more.