Shooting from the hip... and hitting

In all likelihood, it was simply down to travel arrangements going more smoothly than anticipated, but it also summed up how eager the Tory leader is to win over Yorkshire, where the General Election could yet be won or lost.

Over the past couple of years Mr Cameron has had plenty of experience at these kind of events, operating his own brand of unscripted town hall meetings on a regular basis. So no surprise then that he was composed, confident and assured. After all, in less than 60 days he could have shed the "leader of the opposition" tag to become Prime Minister.

But it was not simply a public relations exercise where questioners were told exactly what they want to hear.

Asked at the end about which of his qualities would most appeal to the straight-talking Yorkshire public, Mr Cameron responded: "I'm telling you very straight what we can do and what we can't do. I've not answered every question by saying 'yes of course, we'll do whatever you want' – I've answered by saying this is what our priorities are."

In a display of this open approach, he played down the chances of reversing retrospective hikes in port rates, offered no "blanket guarantee" on protecting transport spending and responded to right-to-die campaigner Debbie Purdy's question about whether he supported a legal framework for assisted suicide by saying "I'm afraid I don't".

Calls for a minimum drinks price to stop binge boozers were flatly dismissed and the suggestion that Tory planning reforms represented a "Nimby's charter" were also smartly slapped down.

There isn't quite the same straight-talking approach when it comes to hung parliaments, however, as he neatly side-stepped a question over whether he would take part in a coalition.

Neither does his claim that the Tories' policy on Regional Development Agencies has always been clear quite ring true when one of his senior shadow ministers – Caroline Spelman – said in February 2009 that the agencies "will be abolished" only to issue a letter earlier this month saying they would be "reformed".

So after an hour of questioning by everyone from sixth-form students to pensioners, on subjects from Yorkshire farming to the Middle East impasse, what had we learnt? Committed Cameron watchers would probably say not much that was new, but those with a less eager eye will have seen a man passionate about localism, steadfast in his opposition to Britain joining the single European currency, determined to bring down the deficit and exasperated at the government he hopes will be out of power by May 7.

Those working in the tourism industry will take heart from his understanding of some of the problems they suffer, although foreign experts may wonder whether it is a little pessimistic to suggest the best the British can do to bring peace to the Middle East is to support the Americans.

The frequent charge made against the Tories is they still lack policies, yet from a "green deal" to cut carbon emissions from homes to an 8,000 one-off payment to cover care fees most will have gone away with fresh light shed on what a Cameron administration would mean for them.

But those in attendance will also be puzzled by Mr Cameron's insistence that, despite having sympathy for the campaign against abolishing tax breaks for holiday homes, the black hole meant "we can not

automatically pledge to repeal it" – only to hear George Osborne hours later announce that a Conservative government "will take action to undo the damage caused by the abolition" of the tax breaks. Do these close friends actually talk to each other?