The comments made by Daisy Cooper, the Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats, on 23 May 2024.
We have ruled out doing any deal whatsoever with this Conservative Government because it is really quite clear that there are lifelong Conservative voters who can no longer stomach voting for this Conservative Party, they simply don’t recognise it anymore.
The statement made by Sir Keir Starmer, the Leader of the Opposition, on 22 May 2024.
Tonight the Prime Minister has finally announced the next General Election.
A moment the country needs – and has been waiting for. And where, by the force of our democracy power returns to you.
A chance to change for the better. Your future. Your community. Your country.
It will feel like a long campaign – I’m sure of that. But no matter what else is said and done. That opportunity for change is what this election is about.
Over the course of the last four years – we have changed the Labour Party. Returned it once more to the service of working people.
All we ask now – humbly – is to do exactly the same for our country. And return Britain to the service of working people. To that purpose.
We offer three reasons why you should change Britain with Labour.
One – because we will stop the chaos.
Look around our country. The sewage in our rivers. People waiting on trolleys in A&E. Crime virtually unpunished. Mortgages and food prices – through the roof.
It’s all – every bit of it – a direct result of the Tory chaos in Westminster.
Time and again, they pursue their own interests. Rather than tackling the issues that affect your family.
And if they get another five years, they will feel entitled to carry on exactly as they are. Nothing will change.
A vote for Labour is a vote for stability – economic and political. A politics that treads more lightly on all our lives. A vote to stop the chaos.
Two – because it’s time for change.
Our offer is to reset both our economy and our politics.
So that they once again serve the interests of working people.
We totally reject the Tory view that economic strength is somehow gifted from those at the top.
Over the past fourteen years – through all the crises we have had to face – sticking with this idea has left our country exposed, insecure and unable to unlock the potential of every community.
But a vote for Labour is a vote to turn the page on all that. A vote for change.
And finally, three – because we have a long-term plan to rebuild Britain. A plan that is ready to go. Fully-costed and fully funded.
We can deliver economic stability. Cut the NHS waiting times. Secure our borders with a New Border Security Command.
Harness Great British Energy to cut your bills for good. Tackle anti-social behaviour.
And get the teachers we need in your children’s classroom.
But most of importantly of all, we do all this with a new spirit of service.
Country first, party second.
A rejection of the gesture politics you will see in this campaign, I have no doubt from the Tories and from the SNP.
I am well aware of the cynicism people hold towards politicians at the moment.
But I came into politics late, having served our country as leader of the Crown Prosecution Service.
And I helped the Police Service in Northern Ireland to gain the consent of all communities.
Service of our country is the reason – and the only reason – why I am standing here now – asking for your vote.
And I believe with patience, determination and that commitment to service there is so much pride and potential we can unlock across our country.
So – here it is – the future of the country – in your hands.
On 4th July you have the choice. And together, we can stop the chaos.
We can turn the page. We can start to rebuild Britain. And change our country.
Thank you.
The speech made by John Swinney, the Scottish First Minister, on 7 May 2024.
Presiding Officer
When I stood down as Deputy First Minister in March last year, I believed that would be the last senior office I would hold in politics. Having served then as a senior Minister for 16 years, I felt I had – to coin a phrase – done my bit. To find myself accepting office as First Minister of Scotland today is therefore – to utter a classic understatement – something of a surprise. It is however an extraordinary privilege and it is my honour to accept the office of First Minister, committing myself to do the best I can for Scotland.
As I navigated my way through the media pack in the corridors of this Parliament last week, prior to announcing my candidacy for the SNP Leadership, I tried to explain that I was taking my time to decide whether to stand because I had to be certain it was a decision that was right for my family. For me, that was not a stalling tactic or an evasive answer from an experienced politician. For me, it was the truth.
Members will know that my wife Elizabeth has multiple sclerosis. She is indefatigable in trying to make sure that MS does not get in the way of her living life to the full. But much to her frustration, she does often have to rely on her husband for support and assistance. I could not just commit myself to become First Minister without properly working out how we will be able to manage as a family. We have talked that through and we will manage. But I cannot let this moment pass without making clear to Elizabeth my profound gratitude for the sacrifices she is prepared to make to enable her husband to serve our Country as First Minister.
I am so pleased that my Father, my wife and children, members of my family and our dearest friends, are able to be here today to see this moment. My only regret is that my beloved Mother did not live long enough to see this day. As her Parish Minister wrote to me yesterday “Your Mum would have been (quietly) proud”. My Mother’s love of literature and poetry – which rubbed off on her two sons – would have prompted her to find some words that would sum up this moment.
Yesterday, I was asked what would be the single most important policy objective for my Government. I made clear it would be the eradication of child poverty.
So, in searching for some words to sum up this occasion, perhaps my Mother would have chosen these words from one of Scotland’s greatest poets, Hamish Henderson, who was born in Blairgowrie, in the very heart of my Perthshire North constituency. In his epic anthem, Freedom Come All Ye, which I heard Henderson sing from an open top bus in the Meadows of our great Capital City during a rally that demanded the establishment of a Scottish Parliament in the early 1990s, the poet wrote :
“So come all ye at hame wi Freedom,
Never heed whit the hoodies croak for doom.
In your hoose a’ the bairns o’ Adam,
Can find breid, barley-bree and painted room.”
If there was ever an anthem that railed against child poverty, those words from Hamish Henderson echo through the straths and streets of our diverse country as a call for us to act.
So I will be unapologetic about bringing to this Parliament the measures we can take to eradicate child poverty and I look forward to seeking the support of others to achieve that aim.
Because I recognise, that is how it is going to have to work. I am leading a minority Government. I will need to reach out to others to make things happen. To pass legislation. To agree a Budget.
To pass legislation. To agree a Budget. These sound like dry technical parliamentary terms. But what they mean in reality is if we want to fund our schools and our hospitals, if we want to give our businesses a competitive edge, if we want to take climate action, if we want to eradicate child poverty, if we want to change people’s lives for the better, we have to work together to do so.
This Parliament is intensely polarised at this time. I accept my part in creating that environment – whether that is by shouted put downs from the front bench or heckling from a sedentary position. I do promise Presiding Officer that will all stop – I have changed.
This is not the collaborative place it has been in the past, a collaborative place that has done much good to improve the lives of people in Scotland. As the Parliament marks its 25 year anniversary, and as one of the now relatively small group who have been here from the start, I reflect on the major developments that have taken place by collaborative work and agreement over that time. Major developments taken forward by the Labour and Liberal Executive such as the ban on smoking in public places, or Minimum Unit Pricing by the SNP Government, or the introduction of free bus travel for under 22s by the SNP-Green partnership.
I commit my Government to working to create that agreement across the Chamber. I hope there is the space and the willingness for that to happen in the interests of the people who sent us here.
It is hardly a surprise to anyone in this Chamber that I believe that this country could do more if we had the powers of a normal independent nation. Others in this Chamber take the opposite view. That is the essence of democracy – people free to hold and express and pursue different opinions. The question we face in this Parliament today however is a more practical one.
Does our disagreement on the Constitution prevent us from working collaboratively to eradicate child poverty, build the economy, support jobs, address the cost of living crisis, improve the health service and tackle the climate crisis?
I will give all of my energy, and my willingness to engage and listen, to ensure that is not the case. I invite others to do the same.
When I pitched up at Forrester High School in this City in 1979, at the age of 15 wearing my SNP badge, and my friends and teachers wondered why I had become involved in this fringe party, I could scarcely have imagined that my journey would involve becoming the First Minister of Scotland. It is an extraordinary privilege to hold this office and I thank Parliament warmly for the honour that has been given to me.
To the people of Scotland I would simply say this.
I offer myself to be the First Minister for everyone in Scotland. I am here to serve you. I will give everything I have to build the best future for our Country.
The comments made by Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale, on 22 May 2024.
It’s on!
Rishi Sunak has just called a General Election for Thursday 4th July.
Serving our communities as our MP is an absolute privilege. Together we have achieved so much, whether it’s saving local vital health services or even running our train service on the Lakes Line!
In just a few weeks time, you get to decide who will be your MP for the next 5 years – me or a Conservative.
I would be honoured if you would put your faith in me to carry on serving you as we make our own luck and get things done.
The speech made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, on 22 May 2024.
In the last five years our country has fought through the most challenging times since the Second World War.
As I stand here as your Prime Minister, I can’t help but reflect that my first proper introduction to you was just over four years ago.
I stood behind one of the podiums, upstairs in the building behind me.
I told you that we faced a generation defining moment, and that we as a society would not be judged by some government action, but by the small acts of kindness we showed one another.
You met that challenge and then some.
And I have never been prouder to be British.
And when I introduced the furlough scheme, I did so not because I saw a country simply in need of desperate help, albeit we were, but because I saw a country whose future hung in the balance.
I could be bold and trust in the tens of millions of you at home, that you would rise to the moment, or I could accept the inevitable, millions of job losses, and pick up the pieces.
In truth, it was no choice at all.
I have never, and will never, leave the people of this country to face the darkest of days alone. And you know that, because you’ve seen it.
As I did then, I will forever, do everything in my power to provide you with the strongest protection I possibly can.
That is my promise to you.
Because, for so many of us, it’s easy to forget the scale of what we’ve been through. We were hit by a pandemic that upended normal life.
Who would have thought the government would ever tell us how many times a day we could leave our homes.
Then, just as we were recovering from Covid, war returned to Europe, with Putin’s invasion of Ukraine sending your energy bills spiralling.
I came to office, above all, to restore economic stability.
Economic stability is the bedrock of any future success.
Whether that is rising wages and good jobs, investment in our public services, or the defence of our country.
And because of our collective sacrifice and your hard work, we have reached two major milestones in delivering that stability.
Showing that when we work together, anything is possible.
Our economy is now growing faster than anyone predicted, outpacing Germany, France and the United States.
And this morning, it was confirmed that inflation is back to normal.
This means that the pressure on prices will ease and mortgage rates will come down.
This is proof that the plan and priorities I set out are working.
I recognise that it has not always been easy, some of you may just be starting to feel the benefits, for some it might still feel hard when you look at your bank balance.
But this hard-earned economic stability was only ever meant to be the beginning.
The question now is how and who do you trust to turn that foundation into a secure future for you, your family and our country.
Now is the moment for Britain to choose its future.
To decide whether we want to build on the progress we have made or risk going back to square one with no plan and no certainty.
Earlier today I spoke with His Majesty the King to request the dissolution of parliament.
The King has granted this request, and we will have a general election on the 4th July.
This election will take place at a time when the world is more dangerous than it has been since the end of the Cold War.
Putin’s Russia is waging a brutal war in Ukraine; and will not stop there if he succeeds.
That war has also made all too clear the risks to our energy security. In the Middle East, the forces of Islamist extremism threaten regional and, ultimately, global stability.
These tensions are exploited by extremists who seek to undermine our values and divide our society here at home.
China is seeking to dominate the 21st century by stealing a lead in technology.
And migration is being weaponised by hostile states to threaten the integrity of our borders.
These uncertain times call for a clear plan and bold action to chart a course to a secure future.
You must choose in this election who has that plan, who is prepared to take that bold action to secure a better future for our country and our children.
I cannot, and will not, claim that we have got everything right, no government should.
But I am proud of what we have achieved together, the bold action we have taken and confident about what we can do in the future.
We have tackled inflation, controlled debt, cut workers’ taxes, and increased the state pension by £900 this year.
We have reduced taxes on investment and seized the opportunities of Brexit, to make this the best place in the world to grow a business.
Put record amounts of funding into our NHS and ensured it is now training the doctors and nurses it needs in the decades to come.
We have reformed education and our children are now the best readers in the Western world.
We prioritised energy security and your family finances over environmental dogma in our approach to Net Zero.
We have fully funded an increase in defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP.
We made a decision to invest more in local transport that you actually use rather than endlessly plough more money into HS2.
We set out a comprehensive plan to reform our welfare system to make it fair to those who pay for it as well as those who need it.
Immigration is finally coming down and we will stop the boats with our Rwanda partnership.
And we will ensure that the next generation grows up smoke free.
I hope that my work since I became Prime Minister shows that we have a plan and are prepared to take the bold action necessary for our country to flourish.
I have stuck with that plan and always been honest with you about what is needed even when that’s been difficult.
Because I am guided by doing what is right for the country, not what is easy.
I cannot say the same thing for the Labour party.
Because I don’t know what they offer. And in truth, I don’t think you know either.
And that’s because they have no plan. There is no bold action.
And as a result, the future can only be uncertain with them.
On the 5th of July, either Keir Starmer or I will be Prime Minister.
He has shown time and time again that he will take the easy way out and do anything to get power.
If he was happy to abandon all of the promises he made to become Labour leader once he got the job, how can you know he won’t do exactly the same thing if he were to become Prime Minister?
If you don’t have the conviction to stick to anything you say…
If you don’t have the courage to tell people what you want to do…
And if you don’t have a plan…
How can you possibly be trusted to lead our country, especially at this most uncertain of times?
Over the next few weeks, I will fight for every vote, I will earn your trust, and I will prove to you:
That only a Conservative government, led by me:
Will not put our hard-earned economic stability at risk.
Can restore pride and confidence in our country.
And with a clear plan and bold action will deliver a secure future for you, your family and our United Kingdom.
![PRESS RELEASE : UK Government working hand in hand with Australia to promote trade in legal and tech services [May 2024]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/justice-150x120.png)
The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 13 May 2024.
Legal and technology professionals on opposite sides of the world are set to benefit from bolstered connections between the UK and Australia through the UK Government’s GREAT Legal Services campaign’s latest programme of events.
Taking place over the next 2 days (13 and 14 May 2024), Justice Minister Mike Freer will lead a delegation of UK professionals specialising in legal tech services – and builds on the success of last year’s conference which resulted in millions of pounds worth of business deals.
They will interact with Australian professionals through a series of workshops, roundtables and networking events arranged in partnership with the Department for Business and Trade.
This will support UK lawtechs – companies which make technology or software to provide legal services – to win business and grow their market presence in Australia. Figures show UK legal services providers already exported £88 million worth of business to Australia in 2023.
The trip will help develop a pipeline of Australian legal tech firms to be set up or expand in the UK, further cement the UK’s position as a world leader in legal services and legal technology and support smaller regional firms to trade internationally.
Built around Sydney’s annual Legal Innovation and Tech Fest, this is the second year in a row a programme of events to facilitate legal knowledge sharing between the legal sectors of both countries will take place. Companies who attended last May reported business wins of £16.5 million.
Justice Minister, Mike Freer, said:
I’m proud of our legal services’ world-leading reputation and that’s exactly why I’m visiting Australia as well as Singapore – so we can continue sharing our expertise with others and learn from them to maintain our competitive edge.
Importantly, promoting the UK’s legal and tech sectors abroad helps build connections and ultimately bring investment back to the UK – just as we’ve seen from the success of last year’s conference which resulted in millions of pounds worth of business deals.
The delegation is made up of legal tech firms from across the UK with a range of innovative solutions, including some already turning over £20 million a year. For example, Avvoka, a legal tech firm, are expert in legal document automation – meaning they create automated templates using software for legal documents such as contracts – and already have clients around the world, including in the US, Singapore and Australia.
Of particular interest to Australian counterparts is learning more about how the UK Government supports innovation in the lawtech sector and whether any initiatives such as LawtechUK – a government-backed initiative dedicated to driving digital transformation in the legal sector – could be replicated, where the UK is seen as a global leader.
British Consul General and Deputy Trade Commissioner Asia Pacific, Louise Cantillon said:
I am delighted to welcome Minister Freer and these eight UK legal tech companies, who epitomise the evolution of legal tech in the UK and are eager to understand and engage with the Australian market.
Australia and the UK have a long legal history together, and we have entered a new and exciting era in our bilateral relations as we approach the anniversary of the UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement’s entry into force. The FTA has created new legal and professional services opportunities for both countries, and strengthened the exchange of talent, ideas, and innovation.
A full programme of events is taking place from 9 to 17 May 2024 in Singapore, Sydney and Melbourne. In Singapore, Minister Freer will be looking at the latest technology on probate, court transcripts, AI and discussing how to reduce the legal services regulatory barriers for British lawyers. In Australia, the minister is leading a trade delegation of lawtech companies.
The visit progresses wider UK Government interests in boosting bilateral trade and cooperation with Australia, including the utilisation of a free-trade deal which came into force nearly a year ago to reduce the barriers to exchanging goods and services.
This is part of the government being able to secure unprecedented legal services market access commitments in four Free Trade Agreements (EU, EEA-EFTA, Australia and New Zealand) covering £2 billion worth of UK legal services exports.
The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 13 May 2024.
Prisoners who break the rules while behind bars face new community payback-style punishments like repair work and litter picking, under tough prison rules to be set out this week.
For the first time, Governors will be able to impose “payback punishments” on prisoners who behave badly in jail, such as damaging prison property or being disrespectful to staff.
Punishments will vary from prison to prison, but could include repairing broken items, clearing shared or disused spaces, and litter picking. Offenders who refuse to carry out their payback punishment could have their prison work earnings blocked or privileges forfeited.
These new powers will build on the action Governors can already take if an offender commits a crime while behind bars.
It will remain the case that in the most serious incidents, for example sexual assault or selling drugs, tougher prison punishments could be handed out. In these cases, the crime will be reported to the police and perpetrators face the prospect of new convictions and time behind bars.
Prisons and Probation Minister Ed Argar said:
Discipline is the cornerstone of a prison that is safe for staff and where offenders are put on track to become law-abiding citizens.
Unruly behaviour is not tolerated and these new punishments will help force prisoners to realise their disruptive actions have tough consequences.
These punishments are inspired by the community payback schemes running in communities up and down the country where offenders are forced to clean up graffiti or fly-tipping and visibly atone for their crimes.
![PRESS RELEASE : Defra considers potential new fund in drive to maximise value from R&D and innovation spending on agriculture and nature [May 2024]](https://www.ukpol.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/environmentlogo-150x150.png)
The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 13 May 2024.
Experts can now apply to advise Defra on new ways to finance innovation and achieve a return on investment, including the possibility of a dedicated fund.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has today (Monday 13 May) announced the launch of a new expert advisory group to explore possible routes to generate commercial returns for the taxpayer from the department’s R&D and innovation spending, including through a potential new fund.
Defra is inviting leading experts in academia, business and the financial sector to apply to join the group, which will explore how to best deliver funding to support innovative projects while increasing value for money for the taxpayer. Those appointed will provide constructive and open challenge on a range of potential financing mechanisms, including a new dedicated fund supporting groundbreaking initiatives in the agri-tech and environmental sectors. Other arrangements could include joint ventures, revenue sharing arrangements, and the licensing of intellectual property to maximise the benefits of Defra’s agricultural and environmental R&D and innovation spending, while boosting productivity and economic growth.
Science and technology are fundamental to strengthening our food security, enhancing nature and protecting our environment.
From new technologies driving more productive and sustainable farming to maps and models for managing invasive species, research and development has the potential to transform the way we manage our land and feed our nation.
We are now recruiting for a specialist advisory group to explore options for a more commercial approach to Defra’s R&D and innovation funding, from revenue sharing to setting up a dedicated new fund for innovation whilst offering the taxpayer a return on their investment.
I encourage anyone with expertise in the fields of finance, venture capital, intellectual property and innovation to apply.
Defra’s R&D budget supports the development of new technologies and innovation, often via grants. However, organisations can face challenges accessing finance for scaling up and commercialising their products or services, causing them to miss commercial opportunities or lose out to international competition. The new Advisory Group will explore how Defra can support innovators to overcome barriers such as these, whilst examining how taxpayers could benefit from a share in their commercial success, where this has resulted from public funding.
A Chair and seven members will be appointed ahead of an inaugural meeting later this year and an expected committee duration of three months. Apply for the Chair’s role here and/or to join the board here. The deadline for applications is midday on Monday 3 June.
The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 13 May 2024.
Use of cameras, gear sensors and GPS units will help improve the sustainability of UK fish stocks.
The sustainability of UK fish stocks will be better safeguarded through the use of technology to monitor and manage fishing activity in English waters, the government has announced today (13 May).
The technology – known as Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) – involves using camera, gear sensors and GPS units to make sure that catches are accurately recorded and fish are not unlawfully thrown back into the sea. The data captured will support the fishing industry to manage stocks sustainably and give retailers and consumers greater confidence about the sustainability of our fish.
Volunteers within five priority fisheries will begin to use REM systems from this summer, with their work helping to refine the UK’s monitoring objectives and ensure the technology works for fishers.
Once monitoring objectives have been finalised and the REM systems are demonstrated to be working well, REM systems will become mandatory for all vessels in those fisheries – including non-UK vessels.
The information delivered through REM will support the long-term profitability of the sector and help to build the UK’s food resilience and security.
Fisheries Minister Mark Spencer said:
Leaving the EU has given us the opportunity to take a new approach to fisheries management that is in the best interests of the UK fishing industry.
By harnessing this technology, we can sustainably manage our fish stocks, to benefit the industry, future generations, and our marine environment.
A different approach to managing discards will also be adopted in England, with changes to be made to better account for catches. From 2025, landings and discards will both be counted against quota allocations, and the amount of quota used to cover discards will vary and will depend on the type of vessel and gear types used.
In addition to this, discard reduction schemes will be established to identify ways to reduce unwanted catch in the first instance. Working collaboratively with regulators and the industry, the schemes will identify and resolve barriers to improved gears being used.
Fishers will start to see both approaches implemented at the start of next year.
The speech made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, on 13 May 2024.
Thank you Dean for that warm welcome. At some point during the second half of this year, we will all go to the polls and make a choice. Not just about Conservatives versus Labour, or Sunak versus Starmer. It will be a choice between the future and the past. I remain confident that my party can prevail, not just because of our record alone, but because we will be the only party really talking about the future and not with vague lofty platitudes, but with bold ideas and a clear plan that can change our society for the better and restore peoples’ confidence and pride in our country.
I feel a profound sense of urgency. Because more will change in the next five years than in the last thirty.
I’m convinced that the next few years will be some of the most dangerous, yet the most transformational, our country has ever known.
So the question we face today is this: Who has the clear plan and bold ideas to deliver a secure future for you and your family?
The dangers that threaten our country are real. They are increasing in number. An axis of authoritarian states like Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China is working together to undermine us and our values.
War has returned to Europe, with our NATO allies warning that if Putin succeeds in Ukraine, they might be next.
War rages, too, in the Middle East as Israel defends itself not only against the terrorists of Hamas but a barrage of missiles fired – for the first time – directly from Iran.
Right now in Africa, conflicts are being fought in 18 different countries. And Putin’s recklessness has taken us closer to a dangerous nuclear escalation than at any point since the Cuban missile crisis.
These are not faraway problems. Iranian proxies are firing on British ships in the Red Sea, disrupting goods destined for our high streets.
Here at home, China has conducted cyber targeting of our democratically elected MPs. Russia has poisoned people with chemical weapons.
And when Putin cut off the gas supplies it had a devastating impact on people’s lives and threatened our energy security.
And in this world of greater conflict and danger, 100 million people are now displaced globally.
Countries like Russia are weaponising immigration for their own ends, and criminal gangs keep finding new routes across European borders.
Illegal migration is placing an intolerable strain on our security and our sense of fairness, and unless we act now and act boldly this problem is only going to grow.
Extremists are also exploiting these global conflicts to divide us.
People are abusing our liberal democratic values – the freedom of speech and right of protest – to intimidate, threaten and assault others, to sing antisemitic chants on our streets and our university campuses, and to weaponise the evils of anti-Semitism or anti-Muslim hatred in a divisive, ideological attempt to set Briton against Briton.
And from gender activists hijacking children’s sex education to cancel culture, vocal and aggressive fringe groups are trying to impose their views on the rest of us.
They’re trying to make it morally unacceptable to believe something different and undermine people’s confidence and pride in our own history and identity. Scottish nationalists are even trying to tear our United Kingdom apart.
But for all the dangers ahead, few are felt more acutely than people’s sense of financial insecurity. We’ve been pounded by a series of once-in-a-generation shocks.
The worst international financial crisis since the great depression in the 1930s. The first global pandemic since the Spanish flu in 1918.
The biggest energy shock since the 1970s. Global forces, yet they are hitting our living standards here at home.
We must be prepared strategically, economically, with robust plans and greater national resilience, to meet this time of instability with strength.
And people’s sense of insecurity is only heightened by the fears about new technologies like AI.
When the IMF says 40% of jobs could be affected, or hundreds of leading experts say the risks could be on a par with pandemics or nuclear war, and when children are exposed to bullying, sexualised content or even self-harm online, people want to know they’ve got someone in charge who understands these dangers, because only if you understand what is happening can you be trusted to keep us safe.
But the paradox of our age is that for all the profound dangers we face, right now, we also hold in our hands an opportunity for human progress that could surpass the industrial revolution in speed and breadth.
Technologies like AI will do for the 21st century what the steam engine and electricity did for the 19th.
They’ll accelerate human progress by complementing what we do, by speeding up the discovery of new ideas, and by assisting almost every aspect of human life.
Think of the investment they will bring, the jobs they’ll create, and the increase in all our living standards they’ll deliver.
Credible estimates suggest AI alone could double our productivity in the next decade.
And in doing so, help us create a world of less suffering, more freedom, choice, and opportunity.
Just imagine. Every child in school with their own personalised tutor, and every teacher free to spend more time personally developing each student.
New frontiers in medical diagnostics where a single picture of your eyes can not only detect blindness but predict other diseases like heart attacks or Parkinson’s.
And counterintuitive as it may seem, throughout human history, the greatest breakthroughs of science and learning have so often come at the moments of greatest danger.
The first electronic digital computers were developed by British codebreakers in the Second World War. Solar technology went from powering pocket calculators to a viable commercial technology following the energy crisis of the 1970s.
The fastest development, and deployment, of a vaccine in history came during the Covid pandemic.
And so it is incumbent upon us to make this a period not just of great danger, but great progress, too.
That’s why we launched a bold plan to make science and technology our new national purpose.
We’re rightly proud of Britain’s spirit of discovery and entrepreneurship made us the leading country in the industrial revolution.
But we can be just as proud, just as confident, just as optimistic about our future, and our prospects to lead again in this new industrial age.
And doing so will enrich our lives and create good, well-paid jobs in the growth industries of the future here at home.
At the same time, new and fast-growing economic superpowers like India, Indonesia, and Nigeria are significantly reshaping the global economy.
And just as this ever more interconnected world creates new dangers, it also creates new possibilities.
The United Kingdom is uniquely placed to benefit. We’ve always been an open, trading, maritime nation; and Brexit has given us the opportunity to trade even more.
And we invent, discover, and produce new products and services that the world wants to buy.
From aircraft wings in Filton, to financial services in Glasgow, to incredible cultural exports like film, music, and TV, or sports like the Premier League.
Everywhere from rural Kenya to the cityscapes of South Korea, people stay up all times of day and night to watch their favourite British team.
It’s no wonder that Brexit Britain has leapt above France, Japan, and the Netherlands to become the world’s fourth biggest exporter.
And the more we export, the better our businesses will do, the more jobs we will create, the more wealth we will generate – right across our country.
This is the opportunity before us. A world transformed by technological progress. Huge global markets hungry for new talent, goods, and services. You can see it all around us.
Two brothers from Merseyside sat around their kitchen table and built Castore a £1bn sportswear business taking on global giants like Nike and Adidas, their kit now worn by Red Bull Formula 1 and Bayer Leverkusen.
British companies and workers right across the country are pioneering offshore wind and exporting it around the world. Already, we’ve built the first floating offshore wind farm.
And our innovations have helped reduce the cost of wind energy by around two-thirds, and increased the size of turbines to the equivalent of the Eiffel Tower with blades bigger than Big Ben.
And you can see the opportunity too in healthcare, giving people longer, healthier lives. In Denmark, NovoNordisk created the Ozempic drug which is not only helping to tackle chronic disease globally, but singlehandedly grew Denmark’s entire economy last year.
All this progress should show us that while this is one of the most dangerous periods we’ve ever known, it will also be one of the most transformational.
And if we make the right choices, if we have a bold enough vision, then we should feel confidence, pride, and optimism that Britain’s future is secure.
My point is this: our country stands at a crossroads. Over the next few years, from our democracy to our society to our economy – to the hardest questions of war and peace – almost every aspect of our lives is going to change.
How we act in the face of these changes – not only to keep people safe and secure but to realise the opportunities too, will determine whether or not Britain will succeed in the years to come.
There is an important choice facing the country because despite having 14 years with nothing to do but think about the future, Labour have almost nothing to say about it. No plans for our border, no plans for our energy security, no plans for our economy either and no principles either. Keir Starmer has gone from embracing Jeremy Corbyn to Natalie Elphicke, all in the cynical pursuit of power at any price. So Labour have no ideas, what they did have they’ve u-turned on. They have just one thing, a calculation that they can make you feel so bad about your country that you won’t have the energy to ask about what they might do with the incredible power that they will yield. I’m not saying the past doesn’t matter, I know people are feeling anxious and uncertain, that their sense of confidence and pride in this country has been knocked. I understand that, I accept it and I want to change it. What I cannot accept is Labour’s view that all the worries you have are because of 14 years of Conservative Government. In the last 14 years, we’ve made progress in the most difficult conditions any governments has faced since the Second World War.
A world leading economy, we’ve seen the 3rd highest growth rate in the G7, and created 4 million jobs, 800 a day.
We took difficult decisions to restore our country’s financial security and control national debt, and that allowed us to support the country through Covid, deliver the fastest vaccine roll-out in the world, provide record funding to the NHS, and protect state pensions with the triple lock.
We’ve reformed welfare by capping benefits and introducing Universal Credit to help people into work.
We’ve reduced absolute poverty, pensioner poverty, child poverty. We’ve cut carbon emissions by a third.
Maintained our position as NATO’s second biggest defence power. Halved violent and neighbourhood crime. And improved standards in our schools with English schoolchildren not just the best readers in the UK, but in the western world.
We’ve legislated for equal marriage. And it is now not even surprising for people from ethnically diverse backgrounds to lead Scotland, Wales, and the United Kingdom.
And the economy now decisively has momentum. Inflation down from over 11% to 3%. Wages rising faster than prices.
And in the first quarter of this year, we grew faster than France, Germany, Japan, Italy, and even America.
The plan is working – so we must stick to it, and not go back to square one.
And when Labour ignores the achievements of the last 14 years, or try to reduce the last 14 years to 49 days, remember what they’ve actually doing is trying to distract you from the thing that matters most, the future. Maybe they can depress their way to victory with all their talk and scaremongering, but I don’t think it’ll work because at heart, we’re a nation of optimists. We’re not blind to the challenges or threats that we face.
We just have an innate belief that whatever they are, we can overcome them, as we have done so many times in our history. And create a secure future for you and your family.
Let me tell you more about my vision for how I would lead this country through this time of danger and transformation.
The highest priority of a Conservative Government is to keep our country safe. We’ve proudly taken the generational decision to increase defence spending to a new baseline of 2.5% of GDP, by 2030. Yet Labour have refused to match our pledge. Keir Starmer supported a former Labour leader who wanted to abolish the army and withdraw from NATO and Labour’s current deputy leader, Shadow Foreign Secretary and many others, voted against our nuclear deterrent, the ultimate guarantee of our security.
The global displacement of a hundred million people is a new and defining challenge of our age. But we can and will protect ourselves against illegal migration. That’s why we’re pioneering the Rwanda scheme. And so, when people see that if they come here illegally, they will be swiftly detained and removed, they will be deterred from making that perilous journey, stopping the boats and saving thousands of lives.
I know that our international frameworks are outdated. So there may be flashpoints ahead with the ECHR.
And if the Strasbourg Court make me choose between the ECHR and this country’s security, I will choose our country’s security every single time.
And nor will I ever compromise on defending our values, our history, and our way of life, against those who seek to undermine them.
I am unapologetically proud of who we are.
And under my leadership, ours will be a country where people can disagree in good faith, but where they must do so with respect and decency for others.
A country where the benefits of belonging to our Union are self-evident to the overwhelming majority of our people.
A country where we protect and strengthen the greatest institution of all – the family, better protect children from the harms of the online and offline worlds, and do more to protect single sex spaces.
A country where we celebrate the small acts of kindness that bind our society together, and where we actively work to rebuild the civic involvement and pride that have always formed part of our distinctive national culture.
A country where we honour those prepared to pay the highest price for our freedoms, as we make this the best place in the world to be a veteran here at home.
And a country where we properly respect the older generation.
They’ve contributed all their lives, so whatever the triple lock costs, it is morally right to give older people dignity and comfort in retirement.
But as well as strengthening our national security and restoring pride in our national culture, we’ll also protect you from the dangers of a more unstable world by giving you greater peace of mind over your financial security.
People have been struggling to make ends meet – I know that. In the last few years, you’ve seen rising energy bills, mortgage rates, the cost of the weekly shop.
And I hope I’ve shown through my time in office that, from furlough to support with your energy bills, the government I lead will always be there for you.
But that’s only possible if we take the tough decisions to strengthen the country’s finances and control debt.
You can trust me to do that.
When I stood for the leadership of my party, and my opponent’s policies imperilled our financial strength, I was sooner prepared to lose than abandon what I believe so deeply is right for our country.
I feel the same conviction about Net Zero.
In a more unstable world, where dictators like Putin have held us to ransom over energy prices, I reject the ideological zeal of those who want us to adopt policies that go further, faster than any other country, no matter the cost or disruption to people’s lives.
But even as we strengthen our security and our sense of pride and confidence in ourselves, I also feel a sense of urgency about readying our country to succeed in a world transformed.
That starts by giving all our young people – wherever they live and whatever their background – the skills and knowledge to succeed.
Building on the success of the last 14 years, we will create a truly world-class education system.
The Advanced British Standard is the most far-reaching reform to education for 16-18 year olds in a generation.
We’re tearing down the artificial barriers between technical and academic education.
Increasing children’s time in the classroom.
Studying a greater breadth of subjects to match our competitors.
And unapologetically saying that every single child must leave school not just literate but numerate as well.
Now, I know this will not win universal acclaim but maths will be fundamental to our children’s life chances in this new technological age.
And it is our duty to give them those skills. And more. We’ll end rip-off degrees and massively expand the number of apprenticeships, because a degree is not the only path to success in the modern economy.
And we’ll make sure that everyone has the funding they need to retrain or learn new skills, at any point in their lives, because in the future education won’t stop when you walk out of the school gates.
But for Britain to finish first in today’s world, we don’t just need the skills to succeed, we need to create a dynamic, innovative economy fuelled by technological progress, so we lead in the industries of the future and help you and your family become wealthier and more economically secure.
The government I lead is creating the conditions for a new British dynamism. By investing in the new infrastructure of the future – not just roads, railways, and buses, but gigabit broadband, research and development, computing power.
By helping to create hundreds of thousands of good, secure, well-paid, highly-skilled jobs, that will level up opportunity right across our country.
And yes, by taking the necessary decisions to build the right homes in the right places to support those jobs.
But true British dynamism won’t come from the State alone. It will come from you. It will come from the ingenuity and creativity of the British people, given the support, the opportunities and the rewards to have, pursue and realise big ambitions.
If you have a brilliant new idea – I want you to build it. If you’re passionate about solving a problem – I want you to pursue it.
If you simply want to set up on your own – I want you to get out there and do it.
Because you won’t find the future written in a slide deck in a Whitehall quango.
You’ll find it out there in our country.
And so the government I lead will create the conditions for people themselves to try, to build, to invent – yes, sometimes to fail, but more often to succeed.
That’s why we’re cutting taxes directly on investment. It’s why we’re cutting taxes to encourage innovation.
And it’s why we’re seizing the freedom and flexibility of Brexit. Because so often, the EU’s default approach was top down, precautionary regulation.
Whereas we in the UK now have the chance to be more agile, so that rather than stifling innovation and growth, we encourage it, in everything from financial services to agriculture, from healthcare to house building.
Above all, we will reward hard work.
Because you don’t get anything in life without hard work.
So we’re making the tax system simpler, fairer, and more rewarding, cutting National Insurance by £900 for the average worker, alongside increasing the state pension by £900 this year.
We’re raising the National Living Wage to end low pay.
And we’re reforming welfare to make sure that work always pays, and our safety net is fair to those who pay for it.
Not least because giving people support to get off welfare and into work gives them purpose, dignity and hope and it is also the only sustainable way to cut legal migration.
A world-class education system.
A dynamic, innovative economy.
Hard work valued and rewarded.
That’s how Britain will succeed in future.
That’s how we’ll grow the economy.
And that’s how we’ll transform public services, too.
Imagine a welfare system where new technologies allow us to crack down on the fraudsters, exploiting the hardworking taxpayers who fund it.
Imagine the huge opportunities to cut crime through technologies like live facial recognition, helping police catch wanted criminals, find missing people, and spend more time on the beat.
And imagine our NHS, still free at the point of use, but transformed for the future.
A service staffed by tens of thousands more doctors and nurses, thanks to our Long Term Workforce Plan.
Backed by record funding made possible by years of fiscal discipline. With far greater choice over where you can receive your care, made as simple as choosing what to watch on iPlayer.
And I believe there will be no more powerful example of what all the forces of British dynamism, innovation, scientific discovery and technological progress can achieve, than this:
To address, finally, the fear of one word that still lurks in the back of everyone’s minds, that touches almost every family in our country, and that envelopes our whole world, if we or a loved one hears it: cancer.
Yet even here, if we are bold enough, there can be cause for new hope. We already know we can prevent most lung cancer cases – the UK’s leading cause of cancer deaths – by stopping smoking.
That’s why I took the important decision to create a smokefree generation.
And with huge breakthroughs in early diagnosis and new treatments, like the MRNA vaccine for skin cancer, I believe we can be just as bold and ambitious in improving rates of cancer survival.
Because if we can bring together my vision of a country transformed, with our world class education system that trains the PhD oncologists and apprentice lab technicians, and our dynamic economy that attracts investors and incubates the billion-pound biotech businesses of the future, our post-Brexit regulatory freedoms to approve trials in a safe but faster way.
And the scale of our NHS to help us research and trial those new drugs in a way no other country can, then just one example of the incredible achievements this country can make would be to make a generational breakthrough against this cruel disease and fundamentally change what it will mean for our children and grandchildren to hear the word cancer.
Today I’ve set out my vision for how Britain can succeed in one of the most dangerous yet transformational eras we’ve ever known.
The values that lie behind that vision are a new patriotism: a confidence in ourselves and in all that we can achieve.
I reject those who insidiously question our history and our identity.
I believe in that innate confidence in ourselves that has always run through our island story.
And just as we’re proud of all that we created, invented, and discovered in our past, so we can be confident and optimistic about what we will achieve in our future.
My pledge to you is that I will create the conditions to make that possible, to help you fulfil your ambitions.
To build the world-class education system that gives our children the skills they need to succeed, no matter where they started off in life.
To create the dynamic, innovative economy that will give you the opportunity of a wealthier, more financially secure life for you and your family.
To restore our sense of civic pride and national cohesion so we can be secure in the knowledge that we are all on the same side.
And above all, you can trust me to keep you and your family safe and secure from the threats we face at home and abroad.
There are storms ahead.
The dangers are all too real.
But Britain can feel proud again.
Britain can feel confident again.
Because with bold action and a clear plan, we can and we will create a secure future.