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Category: Speeches

  • Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at the Google Cloud Summit London

    Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at the Google Cloud Summit London

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, at the Tobacco Docks in London on 9 July 2025.

    Thank you for having me, and thanks also for acknowledging the GOV.UK App, which I’m sure you’ve all downloaded.

    If you haven’t already, then you should be doing so now. And I don’t if you’re looking down at your phones while I’m speaking, if what you’re doing is downloading the GOV.UK App – which is already outselling the Bible on the app store, I’m reliably told.

    When I came into office a year ago, I was told to deliver an App, with a digital wallet, with a chatbot, and with a digital driving licence attached to it, I was told it couldn’t be done in one parliament, that it couldn’t be done in one 5 year period.

    My response was I’m sure Google and others don’t take that long to design and deploy their technology. Let me see a timeline.

    The timeline came back to me a week later, and it was now 3 years.

    We did all of this, the start of the deployment of GOV.UK App, within one year of government.

    Within 15 months, all of those services I’ve just outlined will be deployed and put to the benefit of citizens right around the country.

    And that for me is a source of huge pride, because we’ve used technology to wrap services around individual citizens needs.

    Right now, as all of you know, too often citizens are being wrapped around the needs of services themselves.

    And this is a profound change as we go forward.

    Now, sometimes I’m accused of being “too close to big tech”.

    And I could have no better place to have this argument out on the table with you now.

    In May, The Guardian criticised me for meeting with the sector 70% more than my predecessor. Now, to this crime, I plead guilty.

    In truth that was just 28 times over the course of a 6-month period, that equates to around twice a week over that time.

    As Technology Secretary I simply will not apologise for meeting with technology companies – that is the job.

    Just as meeting with the families of victims of social media, regulators, founders, overseas governments and the creative sector, it’s all part and parcel of what I’m paid to do on behalf of the people’s government.

    But I don’t do these meetings just because I’m paid to do it.

    I do them because they matter:

    keeping children safe or from social media – it matters;

    making sure Britain is the best prepared for developments at the frontier of AI – that matters;

    and securing better deals for the taxpayer for the billions of pounds spent every year on software, cloud services, devices and information technology – that matters.

    So today, I’m here to acknowledge our agreement for an entirely new way of working with Google – and how that will impact our public services.

    It’s an agreement that recognises our value as the UK government as a huge client to their organisation.

    And how important their technology is to help us deliver the changes to public services to make them more in-touch and more in-tune with citizens. And better value for money for taxpayers.

    The agreement signals and signifies our determination to exploit the full potential of a partnership between government and Google, with much more collaboration between their UK AI lab, DeepMind, and my own AI developers in my department, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology with a new digital centre of government.

    We’ve already used Gemini to build “Extract”, a specialist AI tool to help councils convert decades-old, handwritten planning documents and maps into data in minutes.

    It could be pivotal in our plans to stop bureaucracy from holding up the construction and ultimately help us build 1.5 million homes that we’ve pledged over this parliament.

    We know that tools using the same technology are capable of transforming Whitehall itself, the NHS, and other essential services that millions of people across our country rely on.

    So, with more hands-on support, I can’t wait to see what our 2 teams deliver together.

    Google are also aiming to train up 100,000 public sector professionals with the skills that they need to use this technology by 2030.

    That’s going to help us hit the target the Prime Minister set earlier this year, where we’ve committed to double the number of digital experts across government…

    …essential to shaking up decades old processes and making public services work in the way people expect services to work in the 2020s – whether that’s in the NHS, policing, benefits or tax.

    And, perhaps most importantly, we are looking to the sector to help shake off the legacy technology that costs the taxpayer an absolute fortune and leaves us vulnerable to outages and to cyberattacks.

    More than one in 4 public sector systems run on this “ball and chain” tech – rising to 70% in some police forces and NHS trusts.

    With contracts signed decades ago, and a high costs of exit, we’ve seen a few tech companies really taking liberties with the public sector.

    In the worst cases, contracts have made it impossible for public sector organisations to move on. They’ve locked up their data up in vulnerable, archaic servers…

    …only to have the price of maintaining the tech hiked up, year-on- year, with no sign of light at the end of the tunnel.

    Now, as Technology Secretary, I am determined to break free from these costly chains once and for all.

    Through agreements like this we can transition public sector organisations trapped by the ball and chain of legacy products and services, and to migrate to the cloud.

    That move alone will liberate public service organisations and use the latest technology, and more freely explore the wider market moving forward. That is what I am determined to do.

    All in all, this partnership could see Google invest hundreds of millions of pounds in Britain’s public sector technology.

    Helping to deliver my ambition to bring the public services people use every day, drag it into the 21st century.

    Without deals like this in place, we had hundreds of public sector organisations…

    …police forces, NHS trusts, local councils, government departments and many, many more…

    They were simply just going it alone in negotiations with big tech companies.

    And they just don’t have the experience and market clout they need to drive the best deal for taxpayers.

    They end up paying the full shop-front rate or even being entirely mis-sold tech that doesn’t work for them in the first place.

    But they’re all buying on behalf of the same client: you, the British taxpayer.

    And that taxpayer is footing the bill for an annual £21 billion for buying the same technology time and time again.

    That’s why I’m determined to secure a new deal for buying tech for the British taxpayer.

    For too long, too many governments haven’t done enough to build the positive business relationships that Britain needs to prevent the taxpayer being short changed when it comes to procuring tech – from healthcare services, policing systems right through to benefits processes, and bin collections, right down to street sweeping.

    Just as with Google on this strategy, when I negotiate with Tech companies, I am negotiating on behalf of the British taxpayer.

    Britain will be using technology in more areas and more than ever before.

    So, my message to big technology companies is clear: bring us your best ideas, bring us your best tech, and bring it at the best price.

    In return, you’ll get access to the biggest client in the country, one that will be increasingly intelligent and increasingly digital.

    And as we start to operate as a more intelligent buyer of technology, new opportunities are going to emerge.

    The first one that I’m pushing for, is to make sure that, whenever possible, UK technology companies- large and small – get a fair shot at winning a contract.

    Our upcoming marketplace – the national digital exchange – will make sure more and more UK tech companies can get their slice of the £21 billion pie.

    That means more money for companies operating here in the UK, workers and founders.

    It will help us to achieve the economic growth upon which Britain’s future prosperity lies. And it will improve the public services on which British citizens depend.

    Now I want to acknowledge the foresight of Google in signing this key agreement, and I want more to follow. I want it to stimulate many similar co-operation agreements with the full range of international and domestic technology companies.

    That is in the interests of higher economic growth, more jobs, better public services and greater value for taxpayers.

    Thank you very much for having me along today.

  • Jacqui Smith – 2025 Speech at the SKOPE Skills Summit

    Jacqui Smith – 2025 Speech at the SKOPE Skills Summit

    The speech made by Jacqui Smith, the Skills Minister, at Keble College, Oxford University on 4 July 2025.

    Introduction

    Good morning.

    Thank you for inviting me today.

    I am delighted to see the exciting work on skills education being led by SKOPE’s research on joined-up tertiary education systems.  It is being discussed across the sector.

    And I include government in that, as part of our commitment to evidence-based policymaking.

    It’s a pleasure to be back in Oxford, where I studied all those years ago.

    I was at Hertford, 5 minutes down the road, a college with a proud tradition of inclusion. I was a beneficiary of the Hertford Scheme to encourage state school pupils to apply.

    I hardly dared hope on a snowy December day in 1980 that I could be the first person from my Worcestershire comprehensive to study here.

    It was Hertford, with its pioneering approach to outreach, that gave me the confidence to apply.

    Starting in 1965, it dramatically raised the college’s academic standards and performance.

    In fact, at one point, the university threatened to disassociate Hertford for unfairly ‘poaching’ the best students!

    But many colleges set up similar schemes to emulate its success, before admissions were finally standardised in 1984.

    Why am I telling you this?

    Because it shows that breaking down barriers to opportunity is the key to success.

    For Oxford to succeed, it must welcome-in the best talent, from across the whole population.

    Challenging Oxford

    Oxford recently released their state school admissions data for 2024.

    And the results were poor.

    66.2% – the lowest entry rate since 2019.

    I want to be clear, speaking at an Oxford college today, that this is unacceptable.

    The university must do better.

    The independent sector educates around 6% of school children in the UK.

    But they make-up 33.8% of Oxford entrants.

    Do you really think you’re finding the cream of the crop, if a third of your students come from 6% of the population?

    It’s absurd.

    Arcane, even.

    And it can’t continue.

    It’s because I care about Oxford and I understand the difference that it can make to people’s lives that I’m challenging you to do better.  But it certainly isn’t only Oxford that has much further to go in ensuring access.

    For example, it is shocking how few care leavers attend university, let alone this one!

    Just 14% enter higher education, and they are more than twice as likely to drop-out.

    University entry is supposed to be a meritocracy.

    But there’s still an awful lot of untapped talent out there.

    People with the potential to soar in higher education.

    Universities have got to go further.

    Play a stronger role in expanding access, and improve outcomes for disadvantaged students.

    And this must include more support for care leavers, some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

    I welcome Oxford’s recent commitment, along with other Russell Group universities, to do more for students who grew-up in care.

    And to increase your admissions transparency, and use of contextual admissions.

    I look forward to seeing some tangible outcomes from this pledge.

    I’m not looking for tinkering at the edges. A leg-up here, a bursary there.

    As a Labour government, we want Big Picture change.

    This is about individual opportunity, but it matters across government,

    from education, to health, to the economy. Just yesterday, Wes and Bridget have set out how we’re asking universities to do more to support our mission to break down the barriers to opportunity.  We’re looking at better transparency over university admissions, starting with publishing data on medical schools’ admission of those from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

    We must strive to ensure, from early years all the way through to higher education, that background never equals destiny.

    And that’s where our Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy comes in.

    The Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy

    We will publish the strategy soon.

    It will include our vision for a world-leading skills system.

    One that takes a whole-system, mission-driven approach to breaking down barriers to opportunity to unleash growth.

    This means:

    • A more focused skills system, underpinned by Skills England’s national view of skills needs.
    • Clear, high-quality qualifications that ensure every learner has a clear route to further study or work.
    • Firm foundations, putting the system on a financially stable footing that supports strategic specialisation.

    And finally,

    • A new culture of ‘skills first’ where it is everyone’s responsibility – individuals, employers, and the state – to ensure workers reskill and upskill throughout their lives.

    This will boost personal and national prosperity, and reduce reliance on migration to fill skills gaps.

    What do we need to do to achieve this?

    First, there needs to be a renewed partnership between government and business.

    This means both local and central government working with business to identify skills gaps and develop solutions.

    We’ve heard the calls for more flexibility in the skills offer by introducing foundation and short apprenticeships.

    Now we’re going further with new short courses from April 2026, funded through the Growth and Skills Levy, in areas such as digital, artificial intelligence and engineering.

    These support priority sectors named in our Industrial Strategy, like the Creative Industries and Advanced Manufacturing.

    Because we recognise the importance of key sectors to delivering our Industrial Strategy and our Plan for Change.

    That’s why we’ve adopted a sector-based approach to address key skills needs.

    We started with our construction skills package, worth £625 million.

    To train up to 60,000 extra construction workers – crucial for delivering on our pledge to build 1.5 million new homes.

    We announced a further three further packages in the Industrial Strategy:

    • An Engineering package worth over £100 million, to support the pipeline of engineers into priority sectors like Advanced Manufacturing,
    • Clean Energy Industries, and Digital Technology.
    • A Defence package that is foundational for national security and economic growth,
      including establishing Defence Technical Excellence Colleges.
    • And a Digital package, including £187 million investment for digital and AI skills,
      and a commitment to train 7.5 million UK workers in essential AI skills
      by 2030, through a new industry partnership with major tech players.

    Raising the prestige of Further Education

    We understand that the economy needs both technical skills and academic disciplines in order to grow.

    It’s not a zero sum game – because both have so much to offer our people and our economy.

    And, dare I say it, much to learn from each other!

    Further education needs to emerge from the shadow of Higher Education as an equal partner.

    That means positive prominence in careers advice.

    And public recognition that’s long overdue.

    Technical education needs to be a respected alternative to academic pathways.

    And Technical Excellence Colleges will be at the heart of this.

    Only when there is parity, will we secure high-quality post-16 routes for all learners, rather than the lucky few.

    For learners from 16-19, we will be guided by the independent  Curriculum and Assessment Review, set to publish this autumn.

    High esteem follows high-quality teaching and student outcomes.

    We will provide funding to recruit and retain high-quality Further Education teachers, especially for courses delivering scarce skills to priority sectors.

    And this is backed by funding secured at the recent Spending Review.

    We are investing £1.2 billion a year more in skills by 2028-29, alongside over £2 billion of capital investment in skills to support the condition and capacity of the estate.

    Strengthening Higher Education’s role within the skills system I said earlier that Further Education needs to be an equal partner of Higher Education. Since we came into Government in July, we’ve ended the culture of talking down universities, and dismissing the opportunities higher education provides.

    We’re doing quite the opposite, working with you to:

    • drive up standards;
    • maintain our position as a world-class beacon of excellence;
    • build on a proud history of innovation and brilliance in higher education.

    But as the world changes, so must our higher education system.

    We cannot allow the town and gown divide to widen, and for universities and their communities to drift.

    We need collaboration, partnership, and mutual respect.

    Higher Education needs to reach out and play a bigger role in the skills system.

    Because ‘high-quality post-16 routes for all learners’ doesn’t necessarily mean they must choose between HE and FE.

    Our analysis shows the majority of the future skills we’ll need will be at higher levels.

    This means technical students will need access to cutting-edge facilities and courses, as they build their qualifications.

    So the artificial barriers between Further and Higher Education must come down – in a coordinated, effective way.

    And this will be facilitated by the Lifelong Learning Entitlement.

    The Lifelong Learning Entitlement

    The ability to learn across our working lives is no longer just admirable, or valuable. It’s essential.

    People aren’t just working for longer.

    They are changing roles and careers more frequently.

    And the skills needed for those roles are also evolving rapidly.

    Yet despite all this change, the student finance system still largely operates on the assumption that learning only happens early in life.

    To break down the barriers to opportunity, we must support learning at every stage of life.

    This is exactly what the Lifelong Learning Entitlement – or LLE – will do, offering choice, flexibility and opportunity to adults across their working lives.

    From January 2027, the LLE will replace the student finance system.

    It will continue to fund students entering higher education to take traditional degrees.

    But it will also fund new, flexible modular pathways, widening student finance to a broader range of courses and learners.

    That includes those returning to education later in life, who may be working whilst studying. Providing flexibility around personal commitments like caring responsibilities.

    What does means in practice?

    I want you to imagine Sarah, a full-time receptionist and mother who decides she wants a career change. However, Sarah is concerned about committing to studying full-time, as her family is still growing, and she is struggling to take out time to pursue retraining in computer science.

    Through the LLE and the funding of individual modules, Sarah will be able to study one module at a time, to build up her credits over time, alongside her work and family commitments.

    The LLE will not just change the type of provision on offer.

    It also has the potential to transform how employers work with providers to train and recruit staff, allowing modular top-up to build or update their skills.

    We’re already seeing this play out through our modular acceleration programme.

    We want education providers to innovate in how they respond to the new model, so that lifelong upskilling becomes accessible and unremarkable.

    At the same time, employers must be active partners in LLE provision, co-designing flexible courses that create accessible pathways into the workforce.

    We will shortly set-out the final policy design of the LLE, so FE and HE providers can plan for this transformational change.

    Improving local join-up

    The final thing we must do to widen opportunity and build growth is better local join-up. This means strategic collaboration between local education providers, employers, research hubs and health services.

    We set the scene at the end of last year with our ‘Get Britain Working’ and ‘English Devolution’ White Papers.

    These described how mayors and Local Growth Plans will play a key role in shaping their regional skills systems. Local Get Britain Working plans will drive joined-up action to reduce economic inactivity, and take forward our Youth Guarantee.

    This is key for ensuring young people in difficult circumstances are supported to achieve good qualifications and good employment.

    The skills system is at its most effective when detailed local understanding is matched with insight from local employers and training providers.

    Many young adults face complex barriers to engaging with skills courses; an estimated 1 in 8 young people are NEET – not in education, employment or training.

    Improving the accessibility of training will be crucial to reducing the number of NEETs,.

    But to bring them into the fold, you have to understand local barriers as well as national, systemic issues.

    Further Education colleges often do this well by working with many local partners. They are big participants in Local Skills Improvement Plans (or LSIPs).

    These collaborations identify and respond to gaps in skills provision, giving employers a more strategic role in the system.

    I believe in LSIPs because they facilitate partnership

    Early evidence shows Plans are already having an impact, raising the number of learners training in priority sectors – with more employers telling us that local skills provision meets their needs.

    But we must go further to join-up local systems to drive opportunity and growth.

    Which bring me back to universities.

    Discussions on LSIPs should involve all local providers, and all levels of education – including up to Doctorate level!

    If your university offers a course that relates to your local skills offer, or local employers, you have something to contribute to these discussions.

    And to the outcomes of local students studying beyond your campus, in neighbouring colleges.

    And let’s not forget the role of research and innovation.

    Universities are renowned for delivering solutions to global challenges.

    But this also happens at a local level, as seen with the Oxford Local Policy Lab.

    HE also brings new ideas to market, through start-ups and partnerships with industry.

    Whichever way you look at it, Higher Education has a huge role in driving local growth and opportunity.

    You need to be part of this conversation.

    Universities involved in local growth

    And this is not just some government aspiration!

    There are plenty of examples of institutions stepping-up to play their part.

    The London South Bank University group acts as an anchor institution within the local education community. It brings together FE colleges, sixth form colleges and employers – particularly the NHS – to ensure a truly collaborative approach to education, training and skills provision.

    You’ll hear later from Professor Kathryn Mitchell, Vice Chancellor of Derby University.

    They work closely with FE colleges and local employers, particularly Rolls Royce to ensure clear links between education and the labour market.

    And in the North East, organisations like Sunderland Software City are leading the tech industry to match local education and training provision with regional requirements.

    It’s great to see – and shows just what university participation in inclusive growth can do for the local economy and community.

    Conclusion

    I know I’m not alone here in admiring this, and wanting change.

    Many people in this room who are working to make Further and Higher Education better – to better serve our people and our nation.

    I’d like to thank you for your innovation and dedication to this – which can sometimes be uphill work!

    I’m grateful to SKOPE, who’ve worked with my officials to share their expertise in developing our Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy.

    And to the Nuffield Foundation for helping to fund SKOPE’s research.

    The strategy is just the beginning, by the way!

    The different parts of the system will need to work together to meet its vision.

    To bring about a fairer society, where everyone has the chance to gain good qualifications, get a good job, support their family, and contribute to their community and our economy.

    Let’s make it happen!

    Thank you.

  • Bridget Phillipson – 2025 Speech at the Reception Year Quality RISE Conference

    Bridget Phillipson – 2025 Speech at the Reception Year Quality RISE Conference

    The speech made by Bridget Phillipson, the Secretary of State for Education, at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland on 4 July 2025.

    Hello everyone, thank you so much for being with us today.

    And thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to put today together.

    How wonderful it is that we can meet here at home in the North East!

    I grew up not seven miles from here. Brendan Foster could have run it in half an hour on a good day.

    And it’s lovely to be hosted here at the Stadium of Light.

    A great location to discuss where we can help every child shine.

    Early years education is vital to that.

    To helping every child shine at school, to making sure they all have an equal shot at success.

    To building a strong and fair society.

    That journey begins early.

    But right now, I think we all know it’s not working as it should.

    You’ll know that at the end of reception we measure the share of children reaching a good level of development.

    Can they communicate properly? Are they doing well socially, emotionally, physically? Are they getting to grips with numbers and words?

    It reflects how well families are getting their children ready for school. And the effectiveness of early education.

    This government’s Plan for Change sets a target of a record 75% of children reaching a good level of development.

    On average, 2 in 3 children meet that already.

    But new stats show that for children in need – children in social care, or facing other challenges – it’s 38%.

    And for children on free school meals, it’s barely above half.

    So, we have to ask ourselves, how can there be a fair race to success in our society when whole groups of children start so far behind?

    And these gaps between backgrounds – they’re not shrinking, they’re growing.

    They dig their nails in deep, and then they grow with the child.

    40% of the disadvantage gap at age 16 is already there by age 5.

    It breaks my heart that, for these children, here in our country, a quarter of the way through the 21st century –

    background still means destiny.

    It’s a national scandal.

    Our story of a fairer society, the one we like to tell ourselves,

    where every child has an equal shot at success,

    where what counts is determination, not background,

    talent, not privilege,

    how hard you work, not how much your parents earn.

    By failing these children at the start of their lives, we’re ripping up that story.

    We’re saying that success isn’t for people like them.

    As Secretary of State, it’s my mission to change that.

    To give every child the best start in life.

    To lay the foundations for a stronger and fairer society, right from the very start.

    That’s where the biggest difference can be made,

    that’s where my biggest priority lies,

    and that’s where we’ll begin to break the link between background and success.

    But you’ll be the first to tell me that to do that, we can’t wait until children reach school.

    Because the years before, the earliest years of their lives, they are some of the most important.

    For our children, and for our society.

    From the day a baby is brought home from hospital.

    Her start in life matters so much.

    Because from her first day in this world, an invisible score is being kept, on the factors that will either hold her back or propel her forward.

    Is her home stable, warm, loving?

    Is there enough food in the fridge, enough money in the meter?

    Does her family get the right support?

    Are they able to devote enough time to play with her in the mornings,

    to read to her in the evenings,

    to share in the love and curiosity that will be the bedrock of her development?

    And is she getting those crucial early opportunities to start learning?

    Is there a great nursery at the end of the road?

    With wonderful teachers that will share the right resources to help her shine?

    The answers to all these questions, and many more, will shape more than her first few years.

    They’ll mould her chances of success at school, her opportunities in life too.

    And it’s bigger than that. If we zoom out, these are the issues that will define that stronger and fairer society we want to build.

    Early years can be the driving force for the change this country needs.

    New data out today from the Study of Early Education and Development is yet more proof of that.

    Yet more proof that excellent early years education leads to academic success later on.

    And yet more proof that the link is strongest for children from disadvantaged backgrounds.

    The lower the family income, the higher the impact of early years.

    And the bigger the opportunity to reach those children and change their path in life.

    But I’m sorry to say that, at the moment, we’re missing too many of those opportunities.

    Our early years workforce are heroes. They guide the youngest members of our society with passion, expertise and commitment.

    But we need to back them by modernising our system, boosting family support and working together with parents and the sector.

    Because far too many children are arriving for their first day in your schools simply not ready to learn.

    A quarter not fully toilet trained.

    A third can’t follow instructions.

    Half can’t sit still.

    A source of collective alarm for all of us as a society.

    It holds those children back, of course.

    But it holds the whole class back as well.

    Teachers lose up to two and a half hours catching these children up.

    Not per month.

    Not even per week.

    Two and a half hours per day.

    Lost.

    Precious opportunities, gone and not coming back.

    Schools can be such a force for good. But they can’t do it alone. We need to make sure children are ready to go on day one.

    So we’ve got to transform school readiness in our country.

    In the year this government has been in power we’ve fixed the foundations and begun delivering the change children and parents need.

    We’ve delivered the biggest ever uplift in early years funding for disadvantaged children.

    It’s a system that backs parents too.

    Because we are rolling out the entitlement to 30 hours of government-funded childcare, starting in September.

    Putting up to £7,500 a year back in working parents’ pockets.

    Before long, 80% of childcare will be government-backed.

    And we’re forging ahead with our school-based nurseries. To deliver the places parents need, where they need them.

    And to introduce children to school early on,

    forming partnerships between early years settings and schools, exchanging knowledge and expertise to support children’s transitions into school.

    I want to thank all the providers who are working with us to deliver the change families need.

    And that includes the private, voluntary and independent providers, which I know will do an amazing job.

    Like at Hindley Green Community Primary in Wigan, where the private provider is working to expand the school nursery.

    And our free breakfast clubs are already rolling out in 750 early adopter primary schools too.

    On top of that, last month I announced the biggest expansion of free school meal eligibility in England in a generation.

    Children eating together, learning together, growing together. It’s good for behaviour, it’s good for attendance, it’s good for attainment.

    But we know there’s much more to do.

    Still so much we need to do.

    We’ll soon publish our Best Start in Life Strategy.

    Putting children’s outcomes right at the heart of government.

    And delivering on our target to get 75% of children achieving a good level of development by age 5 will be front and centre.

    But, like so much of our ambition, we can’t get there alone.

    And alongside parents, schools and the whole early years sector, local government has a key role to play too.

    I know many councils share our commitment to boosting the number of 5-year-olds reaching a good level of development.

    And through this new strategy, we will embed targets for local government, in law.

    This is too important. We’ve got to turn this around. And we can’t leave it to chance.

    To drive the change we need, we’re starting early.

    And that will include our reform of the SEND system.

    Early intervention will be a core pillar of that reform. Identifying needs early, and working to support every child to achieve and thrive in the classroom.

    But the transition from those early years into school is just as vital.

    I see the wonderful work you are all doing to help children take their first steps into school.

    Reception teachers go above and beyond, day after day, despite all the challenges, to set children off on the right foot.

    But, if we’re honest – government just hasn’t taken reception year seriously enough in the past.

    Rather than building a bridge between nursery and school, reception has fallen through the gap.

    So just when children should be racing ahead, despite your best efforts, they end up treading water.

    For too long, the first year has been the forgotten year.

    So we’ve got to put that right.

    That’s why reception year quality is one of the four national priorities for our new Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence (RISE) teams.

    It’ll form a key part of our universal offer to raise standards in all schools. We’ll identify and share great practice – just as we’re doing today through this conference.

    And we’re developing a brand-new digital tool to support school and MAT leaders.

    Modelled data on where the evidence suggests your school should be in terms of its overall Good Level of Development score.

    It’ll show where schools are ahead, and where they need to catch up.

    Reception is a time for children to begin finding their voice.

    Language development really needs to click into gear.

    And that’s why we’re continuing to fund the Nuffield Early Language Intervention – for the 11,000 schools already registered, and any primary school that wants it.

    NELI helps spot and sort problems early, supporting more than 50,000 children a year.

    It speeds up progress for all children.

    But, again, the impact is strongest for disadvantaged children. They make 7 months of extra progress on language development.

    For the others, it’s 4 months.

    It’s fully funded for schools, and great value for money for government – a reminder that good interventions don’t have to break the bank.

    The programme has worked wonders at Gillas Lane Primary Academy – just down the road from here in my constituency.

    Gillas Lane serves a disadvantaged community. The share of children on free school meals is double the local average.

    Many children arrive at the school behind with their language development, but NELI helps catch them up.

    The data shows that children on the programme come on leaps and bounds in their speaking, listening and communications.

    It’s making such a difference in their lives – that’s why we’re determined to back early language development across the country.

    But we must match that with early writing skills too.

    Because learning to write can unlock learning across the board.

    It helps children begin to explore their thoughts on the page; it helps them begin to make their mark on the world.

    But last year 174,000 children missed the early learning goal in writing.

    Nearly three quarters of 5-year-olds with special educational needs are behind on writing.

    Nearly half of 5-year-olds on free school meals are behind.

    It’s a huge barrier to learning.

    So next week my department will publish a new writing framework.

    Practical support for teachers to build strong writing skills for children.

    Where our language programmes will help children find their voice, our writing framework will help them write it down.

    But we’ve got to start early on maths too.

    Maths is the language of the universe, at the centre of our understanding of the world around us.

    But for too many children it’s the language of fear and frustration.

    And we can’t let a fear of numbers follow our children into adulthood.

    So, we’re working with our partners to more than double the Maths Champions programme, reaching up to 1,800 more early years settings.

    To give every child the best start in life,

    to make sure every child can succeed in school,

    we’ve all got to recognise our responsibilities.

    As government we have ours. As school leaders you have yours.

    And parents have responsibilities too.

    To make sure their children arrive at school ready to learn.

    Whether that’s their first day in reception, or the last day in year 11.

    Our Best Start in Life Strategy will support parents to do just that – and to do much more for their children as they move into school and beyond.

    Periods of transition are important – for children at school, and for our cities and country too.

    The summer of 1997 was a summer of change. The UK had a new Labour government, and Sunderland had a new football stadium – the one we are in today.

    Sunderland played their first game here on the 30th of July – against the Dutch team Ajax.

    I’m reliably told it was a drab nil-nil.

    Although my Sunderland-mad advisor Ben, who’s here today, insists I also point out that Sunderland won their first league match here two weeks later, beating Man City 3-1.

    But at midnight the night before the Ajax game, Bob Murray, the chairman of Sunderland, released a statement announcing the name of the new stadium.

    It was to be called the Stadium of Light.

    Bob explained that for more than 150 years, right next door to where we are today, miners at Wearmouth Colliery carried with them a Davy Lamp to light the way through their dark working days.

    The stadium was named for them.

    In Bob’s words, it was to let ‘this light shine forever’ – a torch that ‘illuminates the way forward’.

    That’s how I feel about education – lighting the way ahead. And it’s how the miners felt too.

    That’s why the miners’ halls in my constituency down the road and across our region where they had libraries and newspapers.

    Why so many of the banners they hoisted each year at the Big Meeting proclaimed the truth that knowledge is power.

    They knew how crucial a good education today was to a bright future tomorrow.

    So now is the time to revolutionise early years,

    to light those lamps of learning, right from the start,

    and to give each and every child the start in life they deserve.

    Thank you.

  • Keir Starmer – 2025 Speech at the Launch of the 10 Year Health Plan

    Keir Starmer – 2025 Speech at the Launch of the 10 Year Health Plan

    The speech made by Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, in Stratford, London on 3 July 2025. This is the redacted edition issued by the Cabinet Office which omits political content.

    Thank you Rachel, thank you Wes. And thank you Denyse. Come and sit down with us. Denyse’s story is fantastic. Because she works here. She lives in this borough and she uses the services here.

    What a great testament that is. And Denyse, thank you for your introduction and thank you for your words.

    It’s a privilege to be here with you in Stratford. I’ve seen the work that you have been doing this morning. And I’m sorry for interrupting your work.

    I do understand how hard it is. My mum worked in the NHS. She was a nurse, a proud nurse. My sister worked in the NHS and my wife still works in the NHS in one of the big London hospitals. So I do understand what you do, how you do it, what you put in and why you do it.

    So let me start by saying a big thank you to all of you for what you do, and if I may, through you, to say thank you to all NHS staff right across the country who do what they do as public servants by treating and caring for other people.

    Thank you also for welcoming us here. To your Neighbourhood Health Centre. Because it’s buildings like this here that represent the future of the NHS.

    As I’ve just had the chance to go around and see some of the work that’s going on here. The 24 teams that you have got working on dentistry. I’m really pleased to see that you don’t need an appointment, you can walk in. You have got children and families up there on the next floor having their teeth done. That’s hugely important.

    And that’s what a Neighbourhood Health Service can do working in partnership with the people it serves. And Denyse you are the embodiment of that.

    Power and control in their hands. Care closer to their community. Services organised around their lives.

    But look – before I say a bit more about the future in a minute. But it is important that we go back a year to the NHS left by the last government. With record waiting lists. The lowest ever satisfaction. I know the toll that takes on staff who work so hard.

    100,000 children waiting more than six hours in A&E.

    Now – I’m not going to stand here and say that everything is perfect now. We have so much work to do and we will do it.

    But let’s be under absolutely no illusions. Because of the fair choices we made, the tough [political content redacted] decisions we made the future already looks better for our NHS.

    That’s the story of this Government in a nutshell. With breakfast clubs, hugely important for children coming into schools so they are ready to learn.

    Potholes across the country – filled. Fuel duty – frozen. Four interest rate cuts, hugely important for mortgage holders.

    Setting up Great British energy, levelling up workers’ rights, record investment in affordable housing, infrastructure the length and breadth of our country.

    It’s all down to the foundation we laid this year. All down to the path of renewal that we chose.

    The decisions made by the Chancellor, by Rachel Reeves which mean we can invest record amounts in the NHS.

    Already over 6000 mental health workers recruited.

    1700 new GPs.

    170 Community Diagnostic Centres, really important, already open.

    New surgical hubs, new mental health units, new ambulance sites. Record investment – right across the system.

    And because of all that the results are crystal clear.

    At the last election a year ago, we promised two million extra appointments in the NHS in the first year of [political content redacted] government.

    We have now delivered four million extra appointments and that’s thanks to your hard work and that of your colleagues.

    4 million. That’s a record amount for a single year ever. And I want to thank you for the part that you have played in that.

    That is what change looks like.

    A promise made and a promised delivered.

    And turning those statistics into the human is really important. So let me tell you about Jane.

    At Christmas, she was taken to hospital with back pain.

    And the diagnosis was not good. She needed her gallbladder removed. Jane asked as you can imagine “how long will I have to wait”.

    And they said – “I’m sorry, but at the moment it could take up to ten months.”

    Yet – because we have speeded up electives, because we have speeded up appointments, by May – she was offered a private appointment, paid for by the NHS, as part of our plan.

    And now Jane is pain free.

    Five months – not ten.

    She’s got five months back – free from pain, free from anxiety and in a sense her life is no longer on hold.

    That’s what change looks like in human terms. [Political content redacted.]

    But we have to keep going.

    We are fixing the foundations. We made choices no other government would have made and we are starting to repair the damage done to the NHS and public health, through Covid and austerity.

    But reform isn’t just about fixing problems. It’s also about seizing opportunities.

    And the way I see it – there is an opportunity here.

    Because the NHS is at a turning point in its history.

    We’re an older society now. Disease has changed.

    Conditions are chronic, they are long-term, they need to be managed. And that means we need to reform the NHS to make it fit for the future.

    With the technology that is available to us now, we have an unprecedented chance to do that to make care better.

    To transform the relationship between people and the state. To give patients more power and control. And this is about fairness.

    Millions of people across Britain no longer feel they get a fair deal.

    And it’s starting to affect the pride, the hope, the optimism they have in this great country.

    Our job is to change that. And the NHS is a huge part of it. I mean – for 77 years this weekend the NHS has been an embodiment if you like of British pride, hope, that basic sense of fairness and decency.

    77 years – of everyone paying in, working hard, doing the right thing, secure in the knowledge, that if they or their family needs it, the NHS will be there for them.

    In ten years’ time – when this plan has run its course, I want people to say this was the moment, this was the government that secured those values for the future.

    And look – when people are uncertain about the deal they are getting from this country, what fairer way is there to respond to that than by giving them more control.

    By partnering with them, to build an NHS that is fit to face the future.

    That’s what this plan that we are launching today will do.

    And it will do so in three ways.

    Three shifts that will transform healthcare in this country.

    First – we will shift the NHS away from being only a sickness service to a health service that is genuinely preventative in the first place, prevents disease in the first place.

    That means a stronger focus on vaccination, on screening, early diagnosis.

    Things like innovative weight loss services – available in pharmacies.

    Working with major food businesses – to make their products healthier.

    Better mental health support, particularly for our young people. And starting with children aged sixteen this year we will raise the first entirely smoke-free generation.

    Second – we will shift the NHS away from being a hospital-dominated service to being a community, neighbourhood health service.

    You can see why we chose to come here. Places like this are the future of our NHS. You don’t have to book an appointment. You can just walk in. There are families here and people who use the services live in this area.

    Now of course hospitals will always be important – for acute services especially.

    But I say it again – disease has changed. And we must change with it.

    And not only can we do that. We can do it in a way that improves care and convenience for millions of people.

    So just imagining nurses, doctors, pharmacists, dentists, carers, health visitors all under one roof.

    But also, services like debt advice, employment support, smoking cessation: preventative services which we know are so crucial for a healthy life.

    Now that is an exciting prospect.

    You know – the idea that the future of healthcare is no longer defined by top-down citadels of the central state.

    But is instead here – in your home, in your community, in your hands, that’s an inspiring vision of change.

    It will bring the state and the people it serves into a partnership on something we all care deeply about.

    But more importantly. It means a future where we have better GP access, no more 8am scrambles, more dental care for your children, better care on your doorstep and a Neighbourhood Health Centres like this in our coastal towns, in rural counties, in every community across the country. Every community across the country.

    Finally – the third shift from the analogue NHS we have at the moment to a truly digital health service.

    A health service capable of seizing the enormous opportunities before us in science and technology.

    In genomics, in artificial intelligence, advanced robotics.

    Look – I have seen in your everyday lives what this can do.

    I’ve spoken to stroke patients who have had their lives saved by technology and AI because it could find the blood clot in their brain in milliseconds, giving them just enough time to be operated on and saving their lives.

    So this plan – backs technology to deliver. Because it can and will save thousands of lives. But it’s not just about saving lives.

    AI and technology is an opportunity to make services more human.

    That always sounds counterintuitive, but it does because what it gives all of you and all of your colleagues is more time to care, more time to do the things that only human beings can do which is that care that is needed, the professional skills that you have. So this will make it a more human service as well.

    It gives you more time to care, to do all the things that brought you into the NHS in the first place.

    And it’s not just cutting-edge technology either.

    Technology like the phones in the pockets of everyone in this room we can use that too.

    Now, you won’t hear this often in a speech – but look at your phones. But look at your apps! Seriously! Because what you see on that screen is that entire industries have reorganised around apps.

    Retail, transport, finance, weather – you name it.

    Why can’t we do that with health?

    Why not the NHS app on your phone?

    Making use of the same dynamic force to cut waiting lists at your hospital.

    To make it easier for you to get a GP appointment, to give you more control over our health.

    There’s no good reason why we can’t. So I can announce today, as part of this plan, that we can, and we will transform the NHS App so that it becomes an indispensable part of life for everyone.

    It will become – as technology develops – like having a doctor in your pocket.

    Providing you with 24 hours advice, seven days a week.

    An NHS that really is always there when you need it.

    Booking appointments at your convenience, ordering your prescriptions, guiding you to local charities or businesses that can improve your wellbeing.

    And perhaps most importantly, holding all healthcare data in an easily accessible, single patient record.

    Don’t underestimate how important that is.

    I’ve been up to Alder Hey hospital in Liverpool many times, it’s a children’s hospital, it’s a brilliant hospital.

    One of the times I was there I was on the ward, particularly young children were having heart surgery.

    I have to tell you it was really humbling both seeing what the children were going through but also what the professional staff were doing.

    When I went into a particular ward, I saw a two year old boy who had just had major heart surgery, it’s an incredible thing to see.

    And I spoke to his parents who were at his bedside throughout.

    One of the things they raised with me was the distress they felt that they had to go through every single condition that he had over and over again, whether they went to Blackpool, in Liverpool, at Alder Hey.

    They were actually welling up telling me it’s a really difficult story for us, this is really hard. And we don’t want to keep having to repeat it, why can’t it be recorded the first time around?

    I will remember their faces and the story they told me for a very long time.

    But we can fix that. We can make it more accessible. We can bring this together in one place.

    And there are other examples as well. That red book that every child gets. Why can’t that be digital? There’s no good reason.

    And so that’s exactly what we’ll do.

    We will turn this app into a new front door for the entire NHS.

    A reformed, modernised and renewed – Neighbourhood Health Service.

    That is the plan we launch today.

    That is the change we will deliver.

    [Political content redacted.]

    The NHS on its feet. Facing the future. Delivering fairness and security for working people.

    Thank you.

  • Angela Rayner – 2025 Speech at the Local Government Association Conference

    Angela Rayner – 2025 Speech at the Local Government Association Conference

    The speech made by Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, in Liverpool on 3 July 2025.

    Can I just start by saying how proud I am to be back here in Liverpool.

    And I’m sure you’ve all heard the devasting news this morning about the tragic loss of legend Diogo Jota.

    I know everyone here, his fans and the city of Liverpool will be heartbroken by this news.

    My thoughts are with his family at this saddened time.

    It’s a pleasure to look out at a room full of people dedicated to serving the communities that you represent.

    From Barnsley to Barrow – Cornwall to Cheshire…

    Councillors and mayors are delivering day-in, day-out for local people right across our country.

    I know how hard you work

    I know the difference you make

    I’m for local government because I’m from local government.

    And yes, I wasn’t a councillor. But as a home help and a carer I was on the front line delivering local services.

    And as a union rep, I worked with the leadership of a council to transform the service I worked in, for the good of the people that we served.

    And as a young mum, facing low pay and insecure hours without much of a safety net, it was the Sure Start centre and the council home that helped me turn my life around.

    The services that you deliver every single day changes lives

    And I say that not just as the Deputy Prime Minister, but as someone whose own life was changed by local government

    It’s why, in me, you will always have a Secretary of State that sees you as a partner, and not a punchbag.

    And Conference, it may not surprise you to know – but I’m not a patient person.

    I’ve been restless for 14 years.

    I’m restless to give local people a stronger voice.

    I’m restless to put decision-making in the hands of the people who know best.

    I’m restless to restore local government and provide the change that we were elected to deliver.

    Because I know how hard it has been

    How it feels at the sharp-end at local government level

    That’s why every single day in Westminster I’m fighting to turn that around

    To put power back in your hands, and deliver for communities the length and breadth of Britain.

    So – almost 12 months ago from the General Election, what have we delivered?

    Just last month, in the Spending Review we announced five billion pounds of new funding for local services.

    New funding means an 8% increase in Government funded spending power in the next four years compared to a reduction of 24% in the first four years of the last government.

    We’ve delivered a £4 billion uplift to adult social care

    alongside a targeted recovery grant of £600m for the areas most in need

    we doubled the direct investment in preventative children’s social care services.

    and provided a record £1.6bn for local road maintenance, enough to fill an extra 7 million potholes over the next year. I knew that would wet your whistle.

    And an uplift for every single local highway authority.

    We have refused to repeat the mistakes of the past which took the axe to your budgets, and left our communities to pay the price

    You made the case for local government, and we listened.

    That’s why we’re rolling back the era of micromanagement too, with simpler funding, and a rapid consolidation of your Finance Settlement.

    We are handing you the freedom and flex to meet local needs without needing to get sign off from central government for the most minor change.

    And right now, the paperwork you’re asked to fill out for micro-managed funds every year would stretch from here to the West side of Wirral!

    There’s no justification for that – so we’re cutting it down

    Meaning that you can focus on your priorities, not filling out forms.

    And with more flexible funding, we’re giving you the opportunity to work more collaboratively including through new pilots so councils and mayors can pool budgets and do joined-up services, learning the lessons of projects like Total Place – the last Labour government’s pioneering reform programme.

    Because we know every ambition of this government requires an active, empowered and strong local government.

    And we were elected to bring change, and that change can only be achieved in partnership with you.

    Nowhere is that more obvious than housing.

    None of our ambitions are possible without the support and the expertise of people here today.

    And the extraordinary examples of so many leaders in this room have inspired us to go further and faster.

    Right here in Liverpool, under the leadership of Council leader Liam Robinson and the Mayor Steve Rotheram, this great city is going from strength to strength.

    You only have to look at the incredible regeneration of the Liverpool Waters district – not too far from here, with new funding unlocking around 2,350 new homes.

    Now Liam said the Central Docks could act as a “beacon for what housing developments in the 21st century can and should be”.

    It’s hard to argue with that.

    But you know – and I know – you need a government that matches your ambition.

    And that’s why I am so proud to say that just last month we announced the biggest increase in the social and affordable homes budget for a generation!

    Our historic £39 billion of new Social and Affordable Homes Programme aims to deliver around 300,000 new homes with at least 60% for social rent.

    This is a personal priority not just for me, but for the whole of this Government.

    And I say that, in the context of 160,000 children that are growing up in temporary accommodation

    When a million are living their lives on social housing waiting lists, no government should sit back whilst people live their lives in limbo.

    So through investment and reform, this government is backing councils and the whole social housing sector to deliver council housing.

    That means a brighter future where families aren’t trapped in temporary accommodation and young people are no longer locked out of a secure home.

    And we’re giving the sector certainty in other areas too.

    A ten-year rent settlement, consulting on how to implement rent convergence,

    Giving social landlords equal access to the building safety funds – for the first time ever

    And in the Autumn, we’ll confirm our approach to help councils to borrow from the Public Works Loan Board.

    And on top of this, we’re also committed to reforming the support given for skills capacity with a new Council Housebuilding Skills & Capacity Programme

    And that will be a partnership between the LGA and Homes England – backed by £12 million in funding – and it will also help you get the skilled staff you need to build.

    And the scale of this challenge means we all need to play our part.

    Local authorities, housing associations, investors, developers, housebuilders, and regulators are all vital to help us reset social housing – so that it’s treated, once again, as the national asset that it is.

    Now, taken together with our bold planning reforms, the new National Housing Bank and the billions we’re putting into transport and infrastructure

    there’s a real opportunity here for councils.

    Opportunity not just to build the decent, and secure homes that working people so desperately need, but to build stronger communities at scale and at pace.

    Our goal of delivering 1.5 million homes will only be met by building affordable homes, with councils in the driving seat.

    We want our new Programme to be a game-changer.

    We’re setting a target which is six times more than were built in the last decade.

    The truth is for too long, the potential of what local government can achieve has been underestimated by Whitehall.

    Our government was elected to deliver change, and I know how fundamental you all are to delivering that.

    But you’re all having to work within a broken system.

    You’ve been left unequipped to deliver what is being expected of you.

    And despite the huge sums that you’re spending on public services

    On adult Social Care

    Children’s Social Care

    SEND

    and temporary accommodation

    I’m hearing loud and clear from you all, that these services are still not working for the people who need them.

    And the truth is that Westminster just hasn’t kept its side of the bargain.

    Public services need reform, and the onus is on us to work with you to deliver it.

    And that is why I am here today to fire the starting gun on a new way of working with you to deliver the reforms we know are needed.

    First, we are today announcing a fundamental shift, to radically simplify the funding and reporting regime that underpins your work.

    Through a new Local Government Outcomes Framework, we will move together to a completely new way of measuring performance.

    And this will be focused on delivering what we know matters most.

    Outcomes like kids learning to read and write

    people living healthier lives for longer

    and communities feeling safe.

    It brings everything in line with the government’s broader Missions and the Plan for Change

    And means prioritising the long term, instead of getting caught up in the nuts and bolts.

    The aim is that it frees you up to deliver meaningful outcomes

    And facilitates a shift towards prevention.

    But I know that we don’t have all the answers

    So my promise to you, is that if you come with a new way of delivering a service and it shows results, we will work with you to pursue it.

    The micromanagement of previous governments failed

    It wasted taxpayers’ money, and got us into the mess we’re in now.

    We can all recognise there are times when governments have to step in

    And make no mistake, that I’m still prepared to intervene where there is failure to deliver

    But it has to be by the book – and we can’t have a ‘Westminster knows best’ attitude.

    That is why we’re putting together a clear menu of actions of how government will respond where services are failing.

    I want everyone to know where they stand so concerns and weaknesses can be picked up before they become a crisis.

    And I’m committed to writing this with the sector, to get this right the first time.

    There’s real urgency to this – so to the Chief Executives and the Council Leaders here today

    Keep an eye on your inbox, because straight after this speech today, you’ll be receiving details of how to get involved.

    Now everyone in the room knows that ending Whitehall micro-management also means sorting out the spaghetti soup of obligations facing local government.

    That’s why, alongside our new Outcomes Framework, we’ll be launching a comprehensive review to ensure unnecessary regulations and needless asks from government aren’t getting in the way of you serving your communities.

    We will harness the Government’s AI team to unlock efficiencies.

    And work lock step with the LGA so we get it right.

    So, that’s two fundamental shifts in the way this government is doing business with local leaders.

    And we won’t stop there.

    Money is understandably at the forefront of everyone’s minds in this room.

    You watched as your communities were unfairly short-changed for too long.

    So that’s why – my third pledge – is to make good on a promise I made countless times in Opposition.

    A promise to fund councils on the basis of need.

    The last government promised a Fair Funding Review back in 2016, they recognised how outdated and unfair the funding process was back then.

    But not under my watch.

    Anyone who knows me, knows I don’t make promises that I can’t keep!

    I listened to the people in this room calling for government funding to recognise the unique challenges of their place

    whether that be rising temporary accommodation or even the pressure caused by huge footfall in coastal communities on the weekends.

    Many of you – including our colleague, the Minister for Local Government – campaigned for this change for decades.

    And this government  will waste no time in delivering it.

    We will implement a Fair Funding Review.

    And yes, that’s the full-fat version!

    Jim and I will make no apology for this.

    Government grant will be allocated based on the drivers of need in your area in a fair and transparent way.

    We will replace the decade old data, and for the first time, properly take into account factors such as deprivation and poverty

    the cost of remoteness faced by rural communities – meaning bus drivers and refuse collectors have to travel miles to serve their communities.

    We will take into account the varying ability to raise tax locally with lower house prices impacting on councils budgets

    temporary accommodation and the impact of daytime visitors on major cities and coastal towns alike.

    Taken together, this new approach supports every part of the country to manage their unique pressures.

    And I’m impatient – as I know you are – for this change.

    So alongside Minister McMahon, we will waste no time in putting things right to support places that lost out to rebuild those valued services and match money to need.

    And true reform of local government means taking a long and serious look at the plumbing.

    We won’t shy away from that.

    That’s why my fourth on my list of Local Government is Local Government Reorganisation.

    Now I can feel the anxiety levels in the room increasing at that phrase!!

    But I think everyone in this room can agree that governments cannot keep passing the buck on this one.

    If we are serious about shifting local government into a stronger footing…

    And fit for the future

    Delivering good services for residents

    Then we must cut out this needless duplication.

    We must take the brilliant leadership shown by district and county councillors, and move it to a simpler structure

    with more resources for the frontline, and a clearer accountability for residents.

    So many of you in this room have entered this process with an open mind and I want to thank you for your continued support as we navigate towards the end of a two-tier system in England.

    You have my word, that Jim and I will work in partnership with you every step of the way.

    Reforming local government also means learning from our mistakes as well as our successes.

    And my fifth focus is on trusting local government to deliver services in-house.

    Local government has long been the champion of insourcing – and I know too well about your efforts to innovate, and bring services in-house to lower costs and improve outcomes.

    We hear you and are on your side.

    That’s why we’re also delivering new procurement flexibilities for councils so you can confidently support your local businesses, and ensure that the investment and jobs stay local too.

    We are working to undo the ideological presumption of outsourcing by default, as part of our plan to Make Work Pay.

    The truth is that we’ve become hooked on short-term solutions – creating a costly dependence on external providers which can fail to deliver particularly for vulnerable people, young and old.

    You’ve been telling us about your efforts to innovate, and bring services in-house to lower costs and improve outcomes.

    With colleagues across government, we’ll introduce a quick and proportionate public interest test, to decide whether work could be done more effectively in house.

    The consultation on insourcing launched last week and I have no doubt we will get a lot of responses from people here today!

    I know what’s possible when local leaders have the powers to really deliver.

    With local people seeing that change in their high streets, in the opportunities available to young people, and in their hopes for the future.

    That’s why we’re shifting power out of Whitehall to our regions, and making devolution the default setting through our landmark English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill.

    It’s part of building a modern state, built on the foundations of a strong local government.

    So, that all levels and in everything we’re doing – whether through devolution, fairer funding, trusting local government in-house, or giving authorities the certainty and freedom to deliver on what really matter.

    We’re handing power back to where it belongs – to people with skin in the game.

    Resetting, rebuilding, and renewing local government, through ambitious investment and reform, and, with it, our country, after the hardest of years, so  that it, once again, works for working people.

    That’s the difference a government makes.

    That’s the difference you make in your Local communities every single day.

    I’ve got your back. Let’s work together.

    Thank you.

  • Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at CityWeek 2025

    Peter Kyle – 2025 Speech at CityWeek 2025

    The speech made by Peter Kyle, the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, on 1 July 2025.

    Last week, I represented the British government on a trip to Singapore.

    I was there to celebrate 60 years of partnership between our 2 countries.

    And drum up investment into British technology.

    It was my first time in Singapore.

    And it struck me that it’s a place that has mastered the art of reinvention.

    From traditional fishing village to global financial centre.

    Small trading post to one of the most competitive economies in the world.

    An economy that, like ours, knows that the key to staying competitive is being squarely focussed on the future.

    It’s a similar idea that brings us together today.

    Because this is a sector that’s also defined by an ability to reinvent itself.

    Where centuries-old banks have had to rip up the playbook.

    To compete with nimble, digital-first firms.

    And where new technologies have made the way you work unrecognisable from how it once was.

    One of my first proper jobs was in a finance team.

    It was 1989, and I worked in the purchase ledger at The Body Shop – a hero of the British high street at the time.

    I matched goods that came in with invoices.

    And inputted all of that into an arcane mainframe computer.

    I’m sure quite a few of you will remember those days.

    And the change after change you’ve seen your institutions through since.

    Because before PIN codes, there was paper.

    Before blockchain, there were books of accounts that landed with a thud on the desk.

    Before cashless, there was ‘Cashier number 3 please’.

    These are changes that financial services firms have not just weathered, but pioneered.

    To keep this sector as the engine of economic growth it truly is.

    And to keep creating products that improve the lives of working people.

    Over the past few years, another change has rippled through the sector:

    AI has reshaped what’s possible.

    And there’s not a sector of our economy it will leave untouched.

    There’s a simple difference between this change and those that came before:

    Sheer speed.

    In past waves of transformation, industry and the state alike could afford to dip a toe in.

    To spend a few years seeing how the water feels.

    This time, we need to jump.

    Since joining government, I’ve been clear that the UK will not be swept along as others lead the AI revolution.

    We’ll shape that revolution here.

    6 months ago, we launched the AI Opportunities Action Plan.

    Setting out how the UK will seize the massive potential for economic growth that AI offers us.

    Growth that’s at the heart of our Plan for Change.

    Since that launch, we’ve opened up applications for areas in the UK to become AI Growth Zones – hotspots of AI infrastructure and investment.

    And had over 200 responses.

    The full weight of government is behind the plan.

    With the Chancellor announcing £2 billion to deliver it, as part of the Spending Review.

    And a Modern Industrial Strategy that doubles down on our commitment to AI…

    …as one of the 6 frontier technologies our digital and tech sector plan focusses on.

    Crucial to that plan is adoption.

    Because talking about the power of AI to grow the economy is all well and good.

    But unless companies use it, that growth only exists in theory.

    Not in practice.

    Financial services is at the front of the pack here.

    Around 3 quarters of firms surveyed by the Bank of England the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) already use AI.

    That’s the 3rd highest rate of adoption across the economy.

    That doesn’t surprise me in the slightest.

    The UK led the world in open banking.

    We led the world in near-instant digital payments.

    And our reputation in fintech is second-to-none.

    The most valuable private tech company in Europe is Revolut, a British fintech.

    Our fintech crown is one I’m infinitely proud of.

    If we’re to hold on to it, you need a government that continues to back you.

    That doesn’t just call for you to keep exploring new technologies.

    But actively enables you to do it.

    When I talk to firms about adoption, they tell me about 2 barriers more than any other.

    A lack of skills.

    And finding their way through a web of complex regulation.

    On skills, we’re partnering with 11 major tech companies to train 7.5 million workers in the UK with essential AI skills by the end of this decade.

    So that a lack of expertise will never put a ceiling on what you can do.

    Regulation shouldn’t be that ceiling, either.

    In her Mansion House speech last year, the Chancellor set out a vision:

    For a regulatory environment that cares about managing the burden we put on businesses.

    Since then, she’s launched a radical action plan on regulation to kickstart growth.

    My part in that is making sure we ease the burden on businesses when it comes to adopting emerging tech.

    About 9 months ago, I launched the Regulatory Innovation Office.

    A dedicated unit to curb red tape.

    And get game-changing tech into the public’s hands quickly and safely.

    It’s already delivered results.

    Apian, a British start-up founded by NHS doctors, is now freed up to use drones to take blood samples from Guy’s Hospital in London Bridge, over to a lab in St. Thomas’ for testing.

    Before the NHS had the okay to work with them, those samples were carted over in vans.

    The journey took around half an hour.

    More if they were snarled up in traffic.

    After support from Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), each delivery now takes just 2 minutes.

    Beds are freed up faster.

    NHS waiting lists go down.

    And a crucial difference is made for patients where every second counts.

    Thanks to RIO’s close work with regulators, companies have made advances like these in fields like space or engineering biology, too.

    But I want more sectors to benefit from the breath of fresh air it offers.

    Instead of being stifled by a blanket of bureaucracy.

    So, today, I can announce that RIO is joining forces with digital regulators.

    To consolidate a labyrinth of regulation, and make it easier for innovators to bring AI products to market quickly and easily.

    This marks a significant boost for fintechs.

    Right now, your efforts to use emerging tech can get mired in a lack of clarity.

    Because there’s no single port of call on what you can do with AI.

    You’re left going from regulator to regulator, picking your way through different sets of rules.

    For start-ups and scale-ups without big legal teams, that’s nigh-on impossible to navigate.

    And for bigger banks and firms, it’s days of productivity sunk.

    Now, RIO is teaming up to the Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF).

    To bring all of that guidance together into a one-stop shop.

    A digital library that lets you quickly search for answers.

    These are changes that firms of all shapes and sizes can take advantage of.

    Up-and-coming fintechs to household-name banks will go from idea to impact faster:

    Using AI to spot credit card fraud hours before humans can alone.

    To get instant answers to your customers.

    To analyse stocks, so people can get more out of their investments.

    We’re clearing the path for you to harness AI to stay ahead of the game.

    And to make people’s lives fundamentally better.

    Because I know this is a sector that will keep reinventing itself.

    Just as I know that AI will continue to bring profound, positive change to the UK.

    With the right backing on adoption…

    Access to skills…

    And clarity on regulation…

    We’ll make sure that this isn’t just a change that fintechs and banks are part of.

    But a change that you lead.

  • Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry – First Report

    Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry – First Report

    The first report of the Post Office Horizon IT Inquiry, published on 8 July 2025.

    Text of Report Volume 1 (in .pdf format)

  • Nadhim Zahawi – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    Nadhim Zahawi – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    The comments made by Nadhim Zahawi, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, on 8 July 2025.

    Rest in eternal peace great man. Norman Tebbit was a giant of Conservative politics & Conservative ideals. A man who looked after his beloved wife beautifully after the horrific terror attack by the IRA. A man who nurtured and befriended young conservatives like me. He was great company on a weekend in the country. RIP.

  • Priti Patel – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    Priti Patel – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    The comments made by Priti Patel, the former Home Secretary, on 8 July 2025.

    Lord Tebbit was a giant of the Conservative Party and British politics. He was a man devoted to promoting freedom and liberty and gave a lifetime of service to our country in the RAF and in Parliament. His formidable record in Government promoting trade, industry and job creation helped lift our country’s economic fortunes and is a legacy to be proud of. Norman spent his life promoting our values and through adversary and challenge, he always displayed great courage.

    It was a privilege to know Norman and receive his support and advice.

    He will be greatly missed and my thoughts and prayers are with his family and loved ones. May he rest in peace and be reunited with his dear wife.

  • Boris Johnson – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    Boris Johnson – 2025 Comments Following the Death of Norman Tebbit

    The comments made by Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister, on 8 July 2025.

    Norman Tebbit was a hero of modern Conservatism. In the early 1980s he liberated the British workforce from the socialist tyranny of the closed shop. He tamed the union bosses, and in so doing he helped pave the way for this country’s revival in the 1980s and 1990s.

    At a time when the Labour government is now disastrously reversing those crucial reforms we need to remember what he did and why. In his single most famous phrase he once said that in the 1930s his unemployed father had got on his bike and looked for work. That wasn’t a heartless thing to say – as the Labour Party claimed. It was because he believed in thrift and energy and self-reliance. It was because he rejected a culture of easy entitlement.

    We mourn the passing of a great patriot, a great Conservative – and today more than ever we need to restore the values of Norman Tebbit to our politics.