Emergency motion – for my sins, I once got an emergency motion (on the situation in Fiji, since you ask) onto the ballot at a Bournemouth conference. Baroness Ludford was very sympathetic to it. It wasn’t chosen in the ballot but it gave me an appreciation of the work and energy involved into putting forward an emergency motion to conference. So, well done to the Young Liberals for getting “A Liberal Future for Under 18s” into the hall for debate. The Tories are proposing an outright ban on social media for under 16s following the ban in Australia (the home of compulsory voting). The answer to any such ban is three letters: VPN. It takes away a lifeline for teenagers discovering their identity, throwing the baby out with the bath water. This motion sensibly proposed a film style age rating system.

Parliamentary briefing – I am biased, but Tom Morrison MP really is quite brilliant. He presented the work of the Commons in a fluent and engaging style while it was interesting hearing about the Lords from Baroness Kath Pinnock. It was great to hear about victories such as getting the Commons to vote for a Customs Union and forcing a U turn on cancelled elections.

Peter Taylor Mayor of Watford helped remove cobwebs from my brain to remember the three elected LibDem mayors so far: Dorothy Thornhill in Watford, Dave Hodgson in Bedford and Peter in Watford. A very vigorous and inspiring speech.

Trump and the wider world – The chair, Nick da Costa, said “We have had many more cards than we can call to speak”. Not surprising. To hear the US President described in terms such as “deranged idiot” in a clinical and objective way, was quite sobering.

It was good to hear Sophie Crossthorn, our PPC for Sheffield Hallam She combines Yorkshire grit with extraordinary Liberal passion. She will go far.

I did a quick tour of the exhibition hall. I topped up my sticker supply at LibDem Women, bought a badge at LibDem Friends of Palestine and purchased the excellent “Liberal Thinkers” pamphlet at the Liberal History stand.

It was great to meet up with old friends who keep the cogs of the conference whirring as stewards and conference committee members. Well done and thank you to all of them. It was a very smooth conference.

On our way back to the station we enjoyed a lunch in the extraordinary SOPHiE at Skeldergate (above) one of two old York bridge toll booths that have been converted into cafes.

We also were invigorated by a somewhat rain soaked walk on the fantastic York city walls.

Well done and thank you to York and the LibDem conference!

* Paul Walter is a Liberal Democrat activist and member of the Liberal Democrat Voice team. He blogs at Liberal Burblings.