Matt Thomas with Steffan Aquarone MP

Political parties are very nervous of innovation and getting anything on a platform at a conference is always likely to incur significant costs or bureaucratic resistance, but the European Speechwriter Network, working with Steffan Aquarone MP, managed a barely perceptible coup at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Bournemouth this week.

We hosted a fringe event in memory of Dr Max Atkinson, who died in July 2024. Max was an academic, author and speechwriter. He rose to prominence when he coached a woman who had never spoken in public before to win a standing ovation at the SDP Conference in Buxton in 1984. The process was featured in a documentary that went out on ITV. He published a book outlining his theories, which included the ‘claptrap’ a formulation of words which tended to elicit applause from audiences.

When Paddy Ashdown became leader of the Liberal Democrats, he asked Max to help him with his speechwriting. And so began a very successful partnership.

Max’s son Simon, who works as a knowledge officer for IPSOS, gave a presentation on his father’s life and theories. Steffan Aquarone MP explained how he had baulked at the idea of using a speechwriter, but since he arrived at the House of Commons, the pressures have been such that he has relied on his researcher to write his speeches.

The mood of the conference was distinctly anti-populist, but the session did cover the fact that politics is not just about communicating policies. There has to be some evidence that those policies are capturing the imagination of ordinary people. A politician has to act like a stand-up comedian, experimenting with ideas, seeing how they land and then reporting back to other party members what enthuses the voters.

Some delegates may have seen samizdat flyers promoting a ‘Britain’s Next Prime Minister Competition’ lying around. We had two entries for this, and we were able to draw five people from the fringe event to take part. In the Purbeck Bar of the BIC, which was sadly deserted, we found a makeshift soapbox which we used as a platform. Seven speakers took part.

Ed Davey can sleep soundly because the three-minute speeches were of uneven quality. However this was our first attempt – the important thing was that it was fun. Councillors got to practice and people who wouldn’t normally speak at conference got to say what was important to them. We were able to award the first ever, ‘Max Atkinson Award for Political Oratory’ to Matt Thomas, from Norwich, who has been a LibDem for three years. Matt has pledge to defend his title in 2026.

We hope to keep Max’s legacy alive at future LibDem conferences.

PS Here is a video of Simon Atkinson giving a tribute to his father in Oxford in March 2025.

* Brian Jenner founded the European Speechwriter Network.