Organised by Federation of Small Businesses, at Sidmouth’s Kennaway House, appears not to have been too well organised. Public were supposed to have been excluded, then apparently there was a change of mind to include them and then a change back to no public. Irritated UKIP members invaded en bloc and the chairman (who seemed unsure where “Knowle” was) seems not to have understood his role.

Not a good start, though we hear Claire Wright was in very good form and Hugo Swire made some very strange remarks (possibly from a very large briefing folder he brought with him).

No doubt UKIP will blame the EU for the way the evening went.