DIARY: Keith Hill in barnstorming form at AGM

On the same day that Prescott was ribbing the Prince of Wales, planning minister Keith Hill was in barnstorming form at the Clapham Park New Deal for Communities AGM. Arriving late because of an overrun Commons debate, Hill proceeded to whip his audience into a state of near-frenzy by waving his arms about a lot and launching into a tirade about "regeneration tourists". It was also good to see Hill living up to his "hard as nails" reputation. After the speech he was introduced to Diary, whom he gripped with a vice-like handshake before booming: "So, are YOU a regeneration tourist?" So cowed was Diary by the experience that it wasn't until later that he realised that his entry to the sector predated Hill's arrival as minister by about two years. By then it was a bit late for a snappy rejoinder about who exactly was the "tourist"!