As the Tories pack up their buckets and spades, senior Conservatives believe that their leader has turned the corner after a tough talking week by the seaside.

Media reports that Iain Duncan Smith would be challenged if the Tories do badly in next spring's local elections have been dismissed by loyalist MPs in Bournemouth.

Shadow cabinet member Eric Pickles, a key player in Duncan Smith's leadership campaign, told ePolitix.com that the party had not set cut-off dates.

"We are following a long-term agenda. We will see some progress in May but there is no point in people saying 'if we don't see things pick up by Christmas there'll have to be changes,'" he said.

"Real politics means taking the agenda which lasts longer than 24 hours."

That support was backed by others who believe the party has made significant progress at its conference.

"If that's the way politics worked we would see changes of government on a much more frequent basis," said fellow shadow cabinet member Jackie Lait.

"Everybody likes the idea that we can only address a problem with the political equivalent of antibiotics.

"That won't work; we do not expect to have a blinding revelation on the road to Damascus."

Senior Tory figures have been relieved that dire predictions of the conference dissolving into factional infighting were not fulfilled.

"There's been a collective sigh of relief," said agriculture spokesman Tim Yeo.

"We've had a very good week, considering where we were starting from on Sunday."

There was also strong support for party chairman Theresa May's hit hitting warning that Conservatives were seen as the "nasty party".

"I don't think there were any surprises," said MEP Edward McMillan-Scott.

"She was saying what everybody was thinking. It cleared the air," said Lait.

"Theresa is a very gutsy lady and she was exactly right," said Pickles.

"The Conservative Party is at its worst when it is insular and talking to itself. We've spent too long counting the number of angels on a pin."

But MEP McMillan-Scott struck a note of caution, urging the party to be bold on European issues such as taxation, a defence force and justice.

"I don't think the party should be frightened of this because we've got strong things to say. We can take out the issue of the Euro until there's a referendum."

He also warned that the party should not focus primarily on chasing the votes of inner cities.

"We need to avoid a dominance by the metropolitan over the rest of the country; we don't all live in London," he said.