Tag: 2026

  • PRESS RELEASE : Prime Minister call with Prime Minister Frederiksen of Denmark [September 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Prime Minister call with Prime Minister Frederiksen of Denmark [September 2026]

    The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 20 September 2026.

    The Prime Minister spoke to the Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, this morning.

    The two leaders began by discussing their upcoming visits to New York for the UN General Assembly. The Prime Minister said he would use the trip to drive forward work on issues that matter to people at home, including reducing the cost of living through greater global stability and delivering security for people through closer international partnerships.

    Turning to defence and security, the two leaders discussed the forthcoming signing of a new deal to strengthen security in the Arctic and the North Atlantic area between the US, Greenland and Denmark this week.

    They welcomed the US’ commitment to the region and underlined the strategic and shared importance of the High North for Euro-Atlantic security.

    The Prime Minister congratulated Prime Minister Frederiksen and the Kingdom of Denmark on negotiating a deal benefitting the US, Greenland and Denmark, and said he would pass on his congratulations to President Trump.

    The leaders also discussed the situation in Ukraine, and the Prime Minister said he hoped to make further progress with partners on stepping up support for Ukraine during UNGA and in the coming weeks.

    The leaders agreed to stay in close touch.

  • Andy Burnham – 2026 Statement on Sarah Everard Murder

    Andy Burnham – 2026 Statement on Sarah Everard Murder

    The statement made by Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, on 21 September 2026.

    The brutal abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard at the hands of a serving police officer changed everything. As the country recoiled in collective horror, we were forced to confront the reality women and girls face every day.

    For me, that happened when watching the details of Sarah’s death unfold on the news with my daughters. As they watched, they began to open up about some of the things they and their friends have to deal with.

    Sarah’s loss was at the most violent end of a scale of misogyny that women experience all around them. It begins with words designed to disrespect them, or catcalling to intimidate women on their own streets. It can grow into harassment, stalking and image-based abuse that seeks to humiliate and dehumanise. At its most extreme, it can lead to violence, abuse and murder. The outcomes may be different, but they have the same poisonous roots.

    This behaviour corrodes our whole society. Yet it is women who are expected to change their behaviour to accommodate it. Wearing trainers so they are ready to run. Changing their route home. Holding their keys between their fingers.

    Checking over their shoulder. And shamefully, it is women who must find the strength to speak out, an experience which too often becomes as traumatic as the original abuse. That has to change. And it has to change now.

    We must end the shame placed on victims and put the responsibility where it belongs: on the men who abuse them. Instead of asking women and girls: what are you doing to avoid this? We should be asking ourselves: what are we doing to change this?

    I am committed to tackling violence against women and girls and getting justice for victims. When I took office, I was presented with some good plans to roll out specialist rape and sexual abuse police offence teams. But these were not due to be introduced until 2029. I have now brought these reforms forward to next year.

    Prosecution rates for rape remain shamefully low. Victims wait years for justice. Cases drag on. And too many victims eventually withdraw, exhausted by a system that was supposed to deliver justice for them. It is not good enough.

    We will ensure court buildings have separate entrances and private rooms to support vulnerable victims. And we will create a new victim support role in courts that will mean women are not alone in this difficult period of their lives. In short, we will rebalance the scales of justice and put women and girls first.

    These changes are long overdue and will help, but directing our efforts on prosecution alone is not enough. We must do more to stop these crimes happening in the first place. To fix this problem, we require a culture shift in our society and a focus on how we prevent male violence against women and girls.

    This starts with education. Our new curriculum will teach young people about healthy relationships and guide them away from harmful misogynistic influences. We have made strangulation pornography illegal, so young men do not grow up thinking sexual violence is normal and young women do not feel pressured into dangerous acts. We will teach students to spot the signs of abuse as they head off to university. And the Minister for Women and Equalities will lead a new national taskforce to tackle and prevent misogyny.

    I know that too often people feel like politics does not work for them and that the government is unable to make a difference when it matters. I am determined to change that. I want to see every part of government and every part of society work together on this issue. And early next year, I will bring together experts from across the UK and around the world for a summit to find new solutions.

    My daughters challenged me that evening to do my bit so every woman can live their life free from fear. That is a responsibility I take very seriously both as a man and as Prime Minister. Together, we can change our culture, make our country safer and bring back hope.

  • Alison McGovern – 2026 Speech on Dementia

    Alison McGovern – 2026 Speech on Dementia

    The speech made by Alison McGovern, the Minister for Social Care, in London on 17 September 2026.

    It’s lovely to be with you all and I just want to say thank you, Michelle, and to the whole team for welcoming me here this morning. It’s been a very exciting time to take on my new brief as Minister of State for Social Care and Mental Health, and it’s wonderful to see you all today.

    Now, I just want to start my contribution with a little story, because in the House of Commons nearly 13 years ago a backbench opposition Member of Parliament intervened on the Shadow Health Secretary during the debate on what became the 2014 Care Act, proudly telling him that a hundred of her constituents had turned out to a public meeting on social care.

    Now, the Shadow Health Secretary at the time replied by acknowledging her recent campaign against zero-hours contracts for care workers, and he said that with such poor conditions for care workers, he was particularly bothered about young people being able to join the profession.

    You’ve probably guessed that the Shadow Health Secretary is now the Prime Minister, and that backbencher was me. And I start with this blast from the past to explain why we meet here at a very important time.

    In the 13 years since that exchange, many issues have crowded the political agenda, from Brexit to Covid, the cost of living, and the cost to society of hate rising around the world.

    It’s about time for a more hopeful story to capture our attention. And I believe the subject of this conference is exactly that — from the despair that too many feel when the diagnosis is Alzheimer’s, to the hope that one day this disease will be something to be managed and no longer a determinant of your future.

    Now, it’s true we should also be hopeful, that we should also be hopeful, not just because we have a new Prime Minister who knows this subject intimately, and I hope you will all have seen from the football last night that, in fact, in the G7 we have two prime ministers who know and care about this subject intimately. And I also want to add that I know that the thoughts of everyone at this conference will be with Andy and his mum and his brothers and their whole family, grieving the loss of their dad. I know that your thoughts are with them.

    And it’s also true, not just because we’ve now speeded up the Casey Commission and social care is rising up the agenda, but also we should have hope because the science of our brains is giving us that hope for the next generation that we will be able to prevent, contain and treat dementia like never before.

    But before I turn to the science, I want to dwell on social care. Now, again, forgive me for telling a short story. Over 16 years ago, I asked my friends and family in the Wirral to send me to Parliament. It is an absolute honour to stand to be elected in your hometown. I thought I knew all the issues requiring attention in my part of the north of England.

    We needed industrial jobs, apprenticeships for young people, and we needed to keep families’ heads financially above water. But in that election, when I knocked on door after door, after door, I was shocked how many people told me their issue was care — whether a family member with dementia, a partner working in a care home, or a constituent desperately worried about their carers struggling to get around a complicated day of 15-minute appointments. There was a hidden crisis I had failed to see.

    And I wish that I could tell you that that changed long ago, and that all MPs in my 16 years in Parliament since have been focused on social care. We haven’t. So I want to ask: what is it about social care that means it gets pushed to one side, never quite the challenge — until recently — that politicians walk towards?

    We are told people just don’t like to think about getting old. Yet there are plenty of people who will opine on pensions, the triple lock, inheritance tax, and a plethora of other issues that affect us as we age.

    I think there are two factors that hide social care: the role of working-class women in care, and the experience of trauma.

    First, women. Of the 1.5 million strong care workforce, just under four in five are women; more than one in five are on a zero-hours contract; more than two in five aren’t working full time; and a third of them are caring unpaid for an adult, likely a family member, outside work. And around 80% of care workers working for independent providers receive within 10% of the minimum wage — the legal minimum that anyone can earn. So the odds are set against this workforce getting a hearing.

    Moreover, it’s a noted failure, pointed out through the years, that economics, particularly the economic models we use to oversee policy, have historically accounted badly for care. In the history of economics, caring responsibilities were not costed but assumed to be given freely by women.

    And as more women worked beyond marriage, their caring responsibilities were thought of as a constraint to the potential labour supply, but not as the crucial infrastructure in our economy without which productivity and growth would be held back.

    We’re still going through this transition. In 2023, the Office for Budget Responsibility recognised that improving childcare would help more people move into paid work, but social care still lives with the consequences of that age-old misunderstanding of care work, which assumed no cost for the labour, ignoring its crucial and foundational role for the rest of the economy.

    Investment in social care is not just a matter of fairness. It’s a matter of seeing the work done by 50 per cent of the population. So, as the population ages, more and more people will face hard choices: keep working, dividing yourself badly between a career and a family, go part-time, or give up your job to care for the person you love. And unless we have social care that helps families keep life in a better balance, that is no choice at all.

    And too many women, and many other, now experience the constraints of providing both childcare and care for an older loved one — it can feel like drowning.

    We know people are leaving work to care for a family member. Recent polling commissioned by Carers UK estimates that about 1,500 people in Britain quit their jobs each day to become unpaid carers, often people with many years’ experience in the labour market whose knowledge we can ill afford to lose.

    And I want to pause on these people for a moment, because I think their experience explains why social care has been a cause without enough campaigners in recent years.

    It’s not that people don’t want to talk about it — it’s that they can’t. Too many of my constituents have lived the trauma of seeing a strong, determined loved one become a shadow of themself.

    To be a child and lose a parent, as I found out only recently, is a horribly predictable shock at any age. But to be a child and experience your parent not knowing you is torture, to try to comfort a parent crying for their own parents, to help a parent lost in this world to try to find any memory that can calm them, is traumatic.

    And I think that’s why people don’t want to talk about social care, particularly care for people with dementia. It’s too often a trauma, and as a result it’s been neglected for far too long. But that is all the more reason it must be a priority right now.

    We need to get our economy firing on all cylinders everywhere, and I think care is a crucial part of the answer for that. And we need the hope in our hearts that the traumas we have lived through can heal. And I believe the plan for social care can do both. Politics doesn’t need to fail. Changing social care will show that we are prepared to walk towards the hardest of problems and hide from them no longer.

    Our Fair Pay Agreement lays the foundations for a National Care Service. These agreements are the first of their kind for the adult social care workforce, with long overdue boost to their pay, terms and professional development. A national agreement, negotiated between unions and employers, and backed by half a billion pounds for the first agreement alone.

    It’s a major step forward to improve pay and conditions, and give staff the status and respect that they deserve, not just once, year-on-year. And it has addressed the power imbalance that has meant women and others working in care have been looked down on for way too long.

    This is just the beginning, though. Skills England estimate that there will need to be an extra 200,000 adult social care workers by 2035. And it will not have escaped anyone’s notice that we have nearly one million young people out of work. But you may not be aware that just 7% of the care workforce are under 25, lower than you would expect compared to their representation in the overall workforce.

    And I think that’s a huge missed opportunity, because as Minister of State for Social Care and Mental Health, I know only too well what some of the next generation are experiencing. Their opportunities for work experience have been constrained, particularly by Covid and other things, and too many have been left to struggle with very poor mental health.

    Those people deserve a job, a start, and to have a first boss who can help them learn alongside the dignity of their first pay packet. Now, when I point this out, some people tell me that care is not for everyone. They tell me people don’t want to wipe old people’s bums. And I would just ask those people to come with me to a care home or on a domiciliary care shift, because quite apart from the fact that dementia also affects people at younger ages, I would just like to show them the emotional intelligence it takes to help an older person, proud, but frail, to have a shower; allowing someone to be vulnerable with you, giving them the confidence to let you help them. That takes intelligence and kindness — and it’s a skill that most politicians could do with learning.

    Working out in the moment what a person can still do for themselves, and helping only to give them the surety to keep going, requires an attention to detail that could help the next generation go on to great careers.

    And I have hope that not only will our plan to change social care serve our citizens better, but also that it will play a central role in paying our debt to the Covid generation, for all those who’ve missed out on the chance they should have had, and who had the temperament to work in care but not the experience on their CV. I want to help them get a job and give them hope for the future. It will also set a clear direction for the health and social care sector to take over the next 10 years.

    And so, now, I want to turn to my second source of hope: science. Now, I know you’ve already heard from Professor Catherine Mummery, who has done so much to build the evidence base on dementia treatments as Director of the UK Dementia Trials Network.

    And after two short years, the network can already point to a proud record of supporting 10 trials and for some of these studies, the UK Dementia Trials Network was the first site in the world to recruit participants, which is another reason to be hopeful about this country’s potential.

    In July, Professor Mummery also gave a fascinating presentation of the CELIA Phase 2 trial results, which showed that the drug, diranersen — I hope I’ve pronounced that right — removed harmful proteins from the brain and slowed cognitive decline. And this is coming at the tail end of a decade that has seen so many breakthroughs.

    I think, if only I could go back in time now and tell Andy Burnham and I, in that House of Commons debate what we know now about Alzheimer’s and dementia, I think he and I would have been so happy.

    The Lancet Commission on Dementia, which gave us a systematic understanding of the ways in which we could modify dementia risk, including addressing hearing loss, which until now we just took to be a natural part of ageing. Blood-based biomarker tests, which may now indicate Alzheimer’s disease pathology, which we’re trialling through READ-OUT and ADAPT trials funded in partnership with the Alzheimer’s Society. We now have 158 drugs being tested in clinical trials, compared to only 24 a decade ago.

    Through the Medical Research Council, the government has funded several studies which will allow us to better understand the neurodegenerative diseases that give rise to dementia.

    Take the Sleep Boost project, which is using sleep recordings, brain activity monitoring, and blood and spinal fluid tests to assess the importance of how slow wave sleep impacts dementia risk. Now, we know sleep plays a vital role in removing harmful proteins from the brain, potentially slowing the development of Alzheimer’s disease, and this study will be recruiting widely, including South Asian communities, who it’s possible may be more affected by poor sleep.

    The SPIN-D multidisciplinary dementia network are funding some really exciting projects, like an evaluation of a physical activity programme inspired by martial arts to see whether it can reduce the risk of dementia.

    But we also know that the average time taken for evidence and innovation to be incorporated into practice is too long at 17 years, which is why the government has committed £5 million to the Dementia Patient Flow Challenge to work out what we need to do to speed up diagnosis and get innovation into practice.

    And I’ll just pause at this point to say that the report that the Alzheimer’s Society published today on going on the journey that we have been on with cancer with Alzheimer’s and dementia. I think that is spot on. The science says we can hope. The question is: can we get it into practice quickly? And that is the job now.

    Now, speaking of getting things done, Baroness Casey will address you this afternoon, and I was very proud to welcome her to the Wirral earlier this month. She recommended we move faster on dementia trials, and we will — turbocharging participation in trials to 2,000 people this year, furthering our investment in the AD-SMART Platform Trial, and standing up the next phase of the Dementia Trials Accelerator. We want these trials to be available to people across the country, because wherever you live, you should have the same chances as everyone else to participate in life-changing research.

    Because this science is not just in pursuit of knowing more, important though that is, but of our lives being more. This science is directed at undoing the trauma of watching a loved one disappear, in all but body before us. Twinned with political efforts on all sides to find a way to provide better, easier, more predictable care. This science can give us hope.

    And we have another reason for hope just now, and that’s the policy decisions we’re taking with the most pro-social-care Prime Minister in history.

    Dementia has been neglected for far too long, and nowhere is this division between health and social care felt more sharply than by people living with dementia and their families, too often left to navigate a shattered system at the most difficult time in their lives.

    That’s why this year we will publish the first ever Modern Service Framework for Frailty and Dementia, our guidebook for better support. It will bring health and care workers together, adhering to a clear set of national standards, sharpening the priorities, raising expectations of the help that people living with dementia and their families should receive, because we must put a floor under the kind of care that people can expect, and we must improve it too, giving the workforce the direction and support it needs to reach the best standards.

    And nobody knows that better than this audience, because I know so many of you have helped shape the framework over the past year. So thank you for putting your expertise, creativity and commitment at the service of our carers and people who depend on care.

    Now, we will need that support again as we act on Louise’s recommendation to appoint a Dementia Tsar, backed with real expertise I’m going to waste no time in doing.

    Nobody wants a future where we can live longer but do less. We want a future where our loved ones stay with us for more years, with more joy and more life to live.

    Where dementia has been a burden for too many to carry the efforts of those in science and social care together can lift that weight off their shoulders.

    Families can be free to enjoy their time and make more memories. That, I think, is the vision for all of us here today, and I’m very excited and pleased to be joining the fight.

  • PRESS RELEASE : OSCE Annual Progress Report on Gender Equality – UK statement [September 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : OSCE Annual Progress Report on Gender Equality – UK statement [September 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2026.

    Ambassador Holland recognises the OSCE continued work to promote gender equality and ensure women’s participation in politics, peace processes and conflict resolution.

    Thank you, Secretary General, for your presentation of the Annual Progress Report to the Permanent Council this morning.

    Gender equality, empowering women in politics, and combatting violence against women and girls remain key elements of the OSCE’s comprehensive concept of security.

    We support the organisation’s continued efforts to promote gender equality, and to ensure women’s participation in politics, peace processes and conflict resolution. The launch of the OSCE Roadmap on Women, Peace and Security, and the Secretary General’s endorsement of the UN Common Pledge, are important steps forward.

    The UK particularly welcomes the report’s strong focus on violence against women and girls. The publication of the first OSCE-wide report on femicide and the convening of the High-Level International Conference against Femicide represent significant contributions to tackling one of the gravest manifestations of gender-based violence. They also underline the importance of reliable data, effective prevention and accountability.

    At the same time, technology is creating new threats. Online harassment and abuse silence women’s voices and restrict their participation in public life – online and offline. OSCE efforts to address violence targeting women journalists is particularly valuable.

    The UK commends the excellent work of the OSCE WIN programme, particularly its support for women leaders in Ukraine, and exchanges between women activists from Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina. We welcome the work of the Women’s Peace Leadership Programme and YoungWomen4Peace in investing in the next generation of women peacebuilders and security leaders. These are practical investments in more representative institutions and sustainable peace.

    We also recognise the efforts to strengthen gender equality within the organisation. Progress in recruitment is encouraging, but women remain underrepresented in senior leadership positions. We as participating States have an important role to play in nominating women for senior seconded posts.

    The United Kingdom remains committed to working with participating States, the Secretary General and OSCE institutions to advance these goals. We owe it to women and girls in our region to deliver on our commitments – and doing so is directly in our shared security interests.

    Thank you, Mr Chair.

  • PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 63 – UK Statement for the panel discussion on the International Covenants on Human Rights [September 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : UN Human Rights Council 63 – UK Statement for the panel discussion on the International Covenants on Human Rights [September 2026]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 17 September 2026.

    UK Statement for the panel discussion on the International Covenants on Human Rights. Delivered at the 63rd Human Rights Council in Geneva.

    Mr President,

    The United Kingdom welcomes this opportunity to mark the sixtieth anniversary of the two International Covenants.

    When these Covenants were adopted in 1966, it was recognised that, together, they gave effect to the vision of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. By enshrining civil, political and economic, social and cultural rights in binding international law, they affirmed the dignity and worth of every individual.

    This anniversary is an opportunity to reflect on the progress achieved and reaffirm our shared commitment to uphold these rights and to remain steadfast in the face of any efforts to weaken them.

    As we look to the next sixty years, the United Kingdom is committed to working with the UN and partners worldwide to promote and protect human rights for all.

    And as noted in the agenda, “showcasing” the real-world value of these rights is essential to building and sustaining commitment to them.

    Mr President,

    We therefore welcome reflection from the panellists on what more we can do collectively to bring to life how these rights support people’s everyday experiences, making clear their relevance, impact and importance for communities around the world.

  • PRESS RELEASE : New spy drones to give Army greater powers on the battlefield [September 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : New spy drones to give Army greater powers on the battlefield [September 2026]

    The press release issued by the Ministry of Defence on 16 September 2026.

    British soldiers will receive new Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) drones, giving them better sight of the battlefield and greater protection against emerging threats in conflict.

    • British soldiers will be better protected and gain greater intelligence on the battlefield with new ‘spy’ drones. 
    • Up to £400 million investment in long-endurance surveillance drones and more than one thousand smaller drones unveiled as part of separate £16 million deal. 
    • Part of government’s commitment to the Army’s next generation of uncrewed aerial systems highlighted in the Defence Investment Plan. 

    They range from small, easy-to-use drones that give soldiers real-time awareness on the frontline, to larger aircraft that give commanders detailed intelligence over longer distances and periods of time. 

    A new contact, worth up to £400 million, has today been awarded to Tekever to bring their AR5 drone into service. The AR5 is a long-endurance surveillance drone that can carry up to 50kg of cameras and sensors, replacing the ageing Watchkeeper system which has been used since 2014.  

    Meanwhile, more than 1,025 small drones are being delivered as part of a £16 million deal with three UK-based small and medium-sized companies with deliveries nearing completion.  

    Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard MP unveiled the news at this year’s Defence Vehicle Dynamics event – the UK’s biennial land warfare exhibition. 

    Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP said: 

    Our soldiers deserve the best technology, and that’s what we’re delivering. From small drones giving troops eyes on the enemy, to the AR5 offering commanders better intelligence over the battlefield, we’re transforming the Army’s ability to see, understand and act first.  

    This is defence procurement that backs British industry, creates skilled jobs and keeps our Armed Forces ahead of our adversaries.

    Both programmes are creating jobs in the UK. The Tekever contract will help support more than 1,000 highly skilled jobs by 2030 across the company’s UK sites in locations including Bristol, Swindon, Lydd, London, Southampton, Edinburgh, and at West Wales Airport. The small drone deal has created more than 30 new roles so far, with 18 already filled in Hampshire, Surrey, Exeter, including several veterans. 

    This builds on the government’s commitment to backing business and British industry, creating new jobs and delivering growth in every postcode. 

    The small drones being delivered include: 

    • 245 FOXE-NATO drones from Evolve Dynamics, based in Hampshire. These weigh less than 250g and include infrared cameras for use at night. 
    • 670 Skydio X10 INTL drones from Marlborough Communications Limited in Surrey. These can be ready to fly in under a minute and reach speeds of up to 45mph. 
    • 110 SONORA drones from a partnership between Brigantes Consulting (based in Exeter) and Harmattan AI. These are designed to help train soldiers before they use similar drones in real operations. 

    The Tekever AR5 deal starts with an initial order of six drones, rising to up to 24 by 2029. The drones will be built at a new Tekever factory in Swindon and have already been used by Ukraine against Russia. 

    Tekever UK’s Managing Director Karl Brew said: 

    We are proud to be delivering the AR5 to the British Army at this critical moment for national security. This investment allows us to grow our UK operations, create hundreds of skilled jobs and bring cutting-edge surveillance technology, proven on the battlefield in Ukraine, into service with British forces.

    The small drone deal was delivered by the UK National Armaments Director Group. It forms part of Project Rapstone, the Army’s programme to bring new technology to soldiers faster, with a goal of doubling the Army’s fighting power by 2027 and getting new equipment from industry to the front line within 24 months. 

    The Defence Investment Plan commits new investment in the Army’s long-range surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, including the next generation of uncrewed aerial systems to replace legacy Watchkeeper drones. 

  • Sarah Jones – 2026 Speech at the Police Superintendents’ Association Conference

    Sarah Jones – 2026 Speech at the Police Superintendents’ Association Conference

    The speech made by Sarah Jones, the Policing Minister, in Stratford on 15 September 2026.

    Last week, I stood with the policing family and the people of Cleveland to honour PC Blades and PC Clough at their funerals, just as I stood earlier in the year at the funeral of PC Jess Turnbull, who was only 19.

    Along with PC Corke, PC Najeeb, PC Chester. Six officers have died since this time last year, and I know the impact of that will still be raw for everybody, especially those who knew and worked alongside those officers who lost their lives.

    I realise too that the work doesn’t stop just because someone has lost their life and something dreadful has happened. You and your colleagues have to carry on serving your communities despite the shock and sadness, and I saw that in Cleveland on the two days that I was there.

    So let me say clearly, on behalf of the government, that we value you, we cherish you, and we stand by you today and always.

    In honouring the memory of those officers who have lost their lives, and all the officers and staff who have died in the line of duty, we have a responsibility to give thanks for their service and their sacrifice, and that of every man and woman who goes to work every day with a singular aim: keeping the rest of us safe.

    While recent events have brought that responsibility to the fore in the most painful way, it is something that has been at the forefront of my mind ever since I was appointed a year ago. And it’s why I was also so proud to have been reappointed to this post when Andy Burnham became Prime Minister, and to have the opportunity to carry on our work together.

    Looking back at my speech here last year, I observed that I was not a police officer and, much to the relief of the people you serve, that remains the case today.

    The point I was making then about not knowing everything and the need to work together, I can see even more clearly now. 

    Because the last 12 months have taught me so much.

    About the challenges of policing in an online age. About the split-second operational decisions in situations the rest of us can barely comprehend. About the painstaking investigations carried out over months and years to tackle the most dangerous threats.

    And the obstacles, the really frustrating obstacles, that stop the service performing to the levels it could reach. And, perhaps most of all, about the enduring courage that is the hallmark of British policing.

    So, my first message to you all – and please convey this to your teams – is one of heartfelt thanks. 

    Not just for the high-profile operations and feats of supreme bravery, but also for the work that often goes unseen but matters so much, from daily acts of local police work, to securing the entire country.

    There are few, if any, public services with such a broad and crucial role in our national life. No one understands that better than you.

    As operational leaders, you are uniquely placed within the system, helping to shape your forces’ long-term strategies in a range of critical areas, as well as overseeing the work of those grappling with the realities of fighting crime and protecting the public on the ground.

    Over the last year I have tried to talk to, go and see as many front-line teams as possible to build my understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the service. In doing so I have sought to strengthen the lines of communication between forces and the government. 

    In one way or another, you will have contributed to that. In fact, I would guess there is no item or issue that crosses my desk without some level of superintendent involvement, and I am grateful for that.

    One of the topics I spoke about last year was having a shared sense of mission and going on this journey together. I think we can all agree that has not always been the case. But it is something we have worked hard to get right.

    While there is undoubtedly much more to be done, we can reflect on some really significant achievements. 

    To start with an issue that matters a lot to me personally because of where I live and the people that I represent, we are making really good progress across the country in our mission to halve knife crime in a decade.  

    Overall knife crime has fallen by 11%. Knife homicides are down by 26%. Hospital admissions for stabbings are down 13%. Knife-enabled robberies are down by 16%. And we have taken more than 63,000 knives off our streets.

    And the impact of all this work can’t be overstated. Our communities are safer as a result.

    There is, of course, much more to do, and earlier this year we published a plan setting out how we want to go further in key areas including prevention and policing. 

    Neighbourhood policing has been a big focus for us. Through the Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee, we delivered more than 3,800 officers and PCSOs into neighbourhood policing roles, which exceeded our target for the first year.

    This means more visible neighbourhood policing, and a greater focus on the issues that matter most to local communities. Building on that strong start, we need to keep going as we work towards the target of 13,000 additional neighbourhood policing personnel by the end of this Parliament.

    And that’s about more than just numbers. We are also restoring the link between policing and communities with named, contactable officers for every neighbourhood and guaranteed 72-hour response times for neighbourhood queries.  

    I’ve just come before here from a visit in Coventry, where I was talking to local police officers tackling antisocial behaviour, dodgy vape shops, the challenges that we know our communities care about so much, the value of neighbourhood policing, the intelligence and the wisdom that they have was there to see, and it is on every visit that I go on.

    Our use of technology also continues to grow. Take facial recognition for example. I have seen that in my own constituency, catching wanted rapists and robbers, taking them off the streets. 

    The benefits to public safety are clear, and we are tripling the number of live facial recognition units across the country.

    Knife crime, neighbourhood policing and technology – these are just some of the areas where we have taken really important strides forward together. 

    But none of us would suggest it’s plain sailing. We still face significant challenges. 

    I know the demand placed on policing is a source of constant concern for you.

    Nick and I have had this conversation many times, and I appreciate it and I understand it. Our task together is to find ways of reducing and effectively managing that demand.

    I spent the weekend on the phone with a constituent, who was a young girl who had mental health problems, who’d been in and out of mental health hospitals, and had been arrested by the police because of her behaviour on the street.

    And the police were having to look after her all weekend because there was nowhere else for her to go. That will be something that you all recognise, and is one of the challenges that we know we face. So together we have to find ways to reduce demand and head off the pressures that we can see.

    The Police Efficiency and Collaboration Programme is cutting unnecessary bureaucracy. Again, something that when I speak to rank and file officers, they always talk about and show me.

    We need to modernise those outdated processes while working to free forces from responding to incidents that would be best dealt with by other agencies, like mental health continues under the Right Care Right Person approach. 

    We are also investing in responsible AI, such as audio-visual redaction tooling.

    Previously, trained police officers, as you know, were spending hours, sometimes days, painstakingly drawing black boxes frame by frame around digital footage as part of case file preparation.

    Over the last two years, we have been supporting the majority of forces with AI software that does this in minutes, freeing up around 1 million hours a year for redeployment if adopted nationally.

    And last month, I announced a new AI-enabled 101 triage system, which will drastically reduce the 4 million calls policing gets a year that are actually for other organisations. 

    We all know there are processes and procedures that make policing more difficult. Often for good, and valid reasons. But sometimes because that is how it has always been done. 

    Where this is the case, we want to know about it and we want to help find the solution. We can, for example, better use the tools officers already have to reduce the time spent on briefing at the start of a shift. How can we help on that?

    We’re working with industry, and there will no doubt be many areas that are ripe for progress as technology continues to evolve.

    Technology offers many opportunities for good. But it also brings risk. 

    To say that criminals today are tech-savvy is an understatement.

    We see this across a range of threats from fraud to child sexual abuse, serious violence to drug-dealing, and the generation of deep fake sexual imagery without consent. 

    It is not enough merely to keep pace with these evolving threats. We need to get ahead of them – and we are supporting you to find ways to do that, including through PoliceAI, the new national centre dedicated to the responsible development, testing and scaling of AI across all forces in England and Wales.

    We know, too, that you and your colleagues are operating in a complex and contested environment. Some of the most acute challenges facing our society play out in our streets, with implications for policing.   

    It wasn’t long after this conference last year that we had that appalling act of terrorism at Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester. 

    And this terrible trend of violence towards British Jews has continued this year, with a series of arson incidents in London, as well as the attack in Golders Green in April.

    In response, we have ramped up resources for policing and protective security, so that our Jewish communities can have the safety and the confidence they deserve. 

    Clearly, it’s going to be a major area of focus for us all in the days, weeks and months ahead, especially at the moment during the High Holy Days. 

    We know, too, that the escalation in hatred and hostility isn’t confined to antisemitism. The threat faced by British Muslims has also grown, demanding an equally robust response from us all.

    As recent events show, public order remains a complex and challenging issue. We had the incidents in Dover and Portsmouth just 10 days ago.

    And I would reiterate the point that the Home Secretary made to your chief constables last week, about the need to move quickly and effectively, making full use of available powers.

    While the right to protest is an essential part of our democracy and one we must and always will protect, I also recognise the pressure policing such events place on your forces.

    There is, undoubtedly, a strong appetite for greater clarity across the service. 

    And that’s why the Home Secretary asked Lord Macdonald to review the public order and hate crime framework. Lord Macdonald has submitted his findings and we will publish them, and our response, soon. 

    Let me turn to resources. This government remains committed to supporting the police mission and has increased police funding by £2 billion since being elected.

    As we change police force structures, the case for changing the funding formula is also well made. 

    We are committed to a proper review of the police funding formula to ensure that force funding is fair and keeps the public safe. A new approach to allocating funding will be brought in as part of our reforms to police structures. 

    Ultimately, we’re looking to ensure that more resources meet the frontline. 

    The successes we have had and the challenges we face are, in a sense, two sides of the same coin. Our achievements to date show what can be done when we work in tandem. 

    Driving down serious threats, becoming smarter and more modern in our approach and keeping a clear focus on the issues that matter most to our communities. When done to the world-class standards we know are possible, the potential of policing is enormous. 

    At the same time, that potential can only be realised if we set up the system for success, which brings me to police reform.

    We would all agree that policing is performing remarkably well given that much of the current system dates back to the 1960s. It is no longer well suited to the nature of modern crime or public expectations.  

    The fundamental issue is that policing is currently neither properly local enough nor properly national enough. Too often, officers and staff are having to work around existing structures rather than being supported by them.

    At present, there’s a heavy reliance on voluntary collaboration, part-time leadership arrangements and securing agreement across all 43 forces, which can make meaningful change really difficult to deliver.

    As a result, policing is not making the best possible use of data and technology, is not supporting and developing its workforce consistently, and it risks being outpaced by increasingly sophisticated criminal networks.

    Policing must evolve to meet modern crime and public expectations. At the local level, it needs to be organised closer to communities and more responsive to local priorities. At the national level, it must be better equipped to tackle increasing complex, cross-border threats. 

    The Police Reform White Paper set out our plans for the biggest structural changes in 200 years.

    At the heart of this programme is a commitment to strengthen local policing through the introduction of stronger and more empowered Local Policing Areas.  

    We’ll establish the National Police Service to tackle national threats, deliver national capabilities and support forces to provide a more consistent service to the public. 

    And we will introduce a force structure that reduces duplication, improves resilience and addresses the inefficiencies of maintaining 43 separate HR, finance and support functions, while ensuring forces have sufficient scale and capability to respond to major incidents.

    Reform isn’t just a structural exercise. 80% of the total police budget is spent on people. The officers and staff who invest heavily in their careers, who are the service’s most vital asset.  

    We are developing a new Police Workforce Strategy to ensure policing has the right people, with the right skills, in the right places, at the right time. 

    Strong, ethical and consistent leadership at every level is essential. Lord Blunkett and Lord Herbert’s report on that subject made a number of really important recommendations.

    We are actively going through all of those now with police leaders, and we will publish our full response to that in the autumn.

    I know people are hungry to get going on those changes, and that Lord Herbert, that I think you’ve already seen, is pushing us to go faster. And of course, you understand and recognise that.

    We are also committed to addressing longstanding concerns with accountability systems to drive up standards and improve both the public and police’s confidence.

    Yesterday, you heard from Jason Beer KC, who the Home Secretary and Lord Chancellor recently appointed alongside Dame Lynne Owens to lead an independent end-to-end review of the police accountability system. We really look forward to receiving their findings, and we absolutely recognise, as Nick said, how important that is for policing.

    To meet the challenges of today and tomorrow, policing cannot remain the same and that is clear. But what will never change is our commitment and the public’s commitment to supporting you and your families.

    The Police Covenant is central to that. And we are putting support for officers and staff at the heart of our police reform, with a package of measures backed by £2.4 million in additional funding this year.

    This is about doing right by those who put themselves under extraordinary pressure every day, facing situations that most people could barely imagine. And going to remarkable lengths to keep the rest of us safe.

    For what we ask of you and your colleagues, the least we can do, as a society, is make sure help is there when needed.

    That is the rationale behind the funding I mentioned. But we must go further. 

    I can therefore announce that I will ask His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services to provide an assessment of the current support landscape, and to consider what more needs to be done at force and national level to drive improvements in this area.

    And your role in this can’t be overstated. No one knows better than you what your teams need and how to manage them through a period of change. Put simply: this successful reform programme will live or die on you and on all of us working together.    

    Before I wrap up, a word of thanks and appreciation must go to Nick and his team for organising this conference. Thanks too, to the whole PSA membership for all that you do in the name of keeping people safe.

    Finally, I spoke at the beginning about the developments since we were last together a year ago, and I want to return to that theme in closing. 

    Perhaps the biggest change is that we have a new Prime Minister. He has spoken very clearly about his determination to lift up our country and restore hope.

    Everyone in this room and the teams they lead are integral to that effort. Because for people to realise their potential, they must be safe. And for communities to flourish, they must be secure.

    That is our mission. And if we build on the momentum we have generated over this past year, I know we can and will succeed.

    Thank you very much.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Six neighbourhood health trailblazers to transform care [September 2026]

    PRESS RELEASE : Six neighbourhood health trailblazers to transform care [September 2026]

    The press release issued by the Department of Health and Social Care on 16 September 2026.

    New neighbourhood health investment partnership to bring care closer to home and tackle health inequalities.

    • 6 projects will redesign health and care services benefitting thousands, as part of an innovative neighbourhood health investment partnership with Macmillan Cancer Support
    • Models will bring together NHS services, councils and community organisations to tackle health inequalities
    • Delivers on government’s mission to move power out of Whitehall, placing more power in communities
    • Backed by £1.5 million from the Office for the Impact Economy, working with Macmillan and Social Finance, the programme will help develop and test approaches that could be expanded more widely across local areas and services

    Communities across England are set to benefit from redesigned health and care services, backed by £1.5 million funding from the Office for the Impact Economy. The projects will help more people receive joined-up support earlier, avoid unnecessary hospital admissions and remain independent for longer.

    The 6 sites will develop and test new neighbourhood health models that bring together NHS services, councils, community organisations and local people to improve outcomes and tackle inequalities.

    They will pave the way for the future so more areas can benefit from the innovative partnership model. The funding will help sites develop and test new neighbourhood health models, creating the foundations for larger-scale investment and wider adoption across the NHS in future.

    The government has partnered with Social Finance, Macmillan Cancer Support and West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. This will bring together expertise in cancer care, system transformation, innovative finance and neighbourhood health. Integrated care boards and local government partners across England were invited to apply.

    The 6 selected sites and their proposals are:

    • Bristol NHS Foundation Trust: a ‘1,000 days neighbourhood model’ that uses population health data and community networks to improve end-of-life care and support more people with frailty and multiple conditions outside hospital settings
    • Lewisham Health and Care Partnership and Healthier Greenwich Partnership: an integrated neighbourhood model covering long-term conditions, frailty, cancer and end-of-life care, building on existing integrated neighbourhood teams while making cancer a more explicit focus
    • Navigo Health and Social Care CIC on behalf of North East Lincolnshire Health and Care Partnership: a proactive neighbourhood care and co-ordination service that brings together primary care, community services, mental health and social care to support people with complex needs before they reach crisis point
    • RM Partners and North Central London (NCL) NHS Cancer Alliance: a large-scale neighbourhood cancer prehabilitation and rehabilitation support offer, across 19 London boroughs, which improves autonomy, care co-ordination, equity of access and local care provision supported by digital navigation
    • North Nottinghamshire Partnership led by Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: a scaled neighbourhood model that takes a proactive approach to caring for people with severe frailty, cancer and multiple long-term conditions, with a particular focus on the wider building blocks of health
    • York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: an expansion of a neighbourhood-based frailty model, using proactive identification, geriatric assessment and multidisciplinary teams to help older people remain at home, with a focus on spreading successful approaches from York into rural and coastal areas like Scarborough and Bridlington

    The programme builds on pioneering work developed by West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Macmillan Cancer Support and Social Finance, where a proactive care service is already helping provide earlier support and keep people independent.

    Dame Diana Johnson, Minister of State for Health, said:

    Neighbourhood health is about bringing services together within our local communities, helping people get the right care, at the right time, closer to home. 

    These 6 trailblazer pilots will help lead the way in showing how locally led services can work together in the areas of greatest need, and support people to live healthier, more independent lives.

    The programme is a key part of our 10 Year Health Plan, helping us shift from treating sickness to preventing it in the first place, and giving people the help they need in the heart of their own communities.

    Minister of State Stephanie Peacock said: 

    These 6 trailblazers show how government, local services, communities and impact investors – working together – can rewire the state to build a healthier nation and stronger local economies.

    The changes will not only improve health and care but also boost efficiency and productivity while mobilising social investment alongside public funding, working hand-in-hand with impact investors.

    The programme will show that partnership working and investment can help local systems to redesign care around their communities – improving outcomes, supporting prevention and helping more people receive joined-up care closer to home. It will demonstrate how social investment can complement public funding to support and sustain that change.

    This forms part of the government’s mission to devolve more power into local communities, harness the impact economy and rewire the state, while shifting focus from sickness to prevention, and move care out of hospital and into the community as part of the 10 Year Health Plan.

    Macmillan has committed to invest £250 million in neighbourhood health across the UK over the next 3 to 5 years and intends to act as a cornerstone investor in the trailblazer sites, helping to attract other partners and investors and increase the funding available to transform care closer to home.

    Social Finance will provide specialist expertise in innovative finance and investment models, helping sites develop approaches capable of mobilising impact investment.

    Gemma Peters, Chief Executive of Macmillan Cancer Support, said:

    These 6 trailblazer sites are doing something special, and I cannot wait to see them become the start of something much bigger.

    Neighbourhood health is about redesigning care around people’s lives: bringing health services, local organisations and communities together to create support that is more connected, more personal and closer to home. These sites will lead the way in showing what is possible.

    Macmillan is proud to be a cornerstone investor, helping to unlock investment from others and to bring our expertise in reshaping healthcare. But this is the start of a journey. We want to see more investors backing neighbourhood health, with government investors and local partners working together to create the conditions for new approaches to grow and spread, so more people can benefit from connected, personalised care closer to home.

    Caroline Gadd, Chief Executive of Social Finance, said:

    Delivering neighbourhood health is crucial to improving health and care for communities, as well as helping the NHS become financially sustainable.

    At Social Finance, we work in partnership to deploy impact capital to drive change across the whole system, and I am delighted to see this government commitment to enabling social investment to back outcomes in health.

    What is most exciting is not just the first wave of 6 sites, but what comes next and the potential to transform how we invest in health in the future.

  • Chris Williamson – 2026 Resignation from Workers Party of Britain

    Chris Williamson – 2026 Resignation from Workers Party of Britain

    The statement made by Chris Williamson on 15 September 2026.

    I have tonight resigned from the Workers Party of Britain because I profoundly disagree with the decision to stand in the Holborn and St Pancras by-election. I have a huge amount of respect for George Galloway, but I believe we should get behind Zack Polanski on this occasion. My firm view is that the left must collaborate to defeat the Labour Party, Reform UK, Conservatives and Lib Dems because these parties are all in the pocket of the neoliberal Zionist war machine. Zack is best placed to do that in this by-election.

    I commend Zack’s recognition that the govt can intervene in the economy to create a good society because it issues the currency. I applaud his position on the so-called war on drugs, which has absolutely failed. I salute his pragmatic and compassionate analysis of illegal immigration. And I commend his assessment of the criminal justice system.

    I do have some differences on a small set of issues, most notably their current pro-EU and pro-NATO stances, but my view is that we should agree where we agree, which is on most things, and simply have fraternal disagreements where we don’t.

  • Matthew Pennycook – 2026 Speech at the Housing Community Summit

    Matthew Pennycook – 2026 Speech at the Housing Community Summit

    The speech made by Matthew Pennycook, the Housing and Planning Minister, in Liverpool on 9 September 2026.

    Thank you for that introduction Kirsty and good morning everyone.

    It is a privilege to take part in this year’s Housing Community Summit, and I extend my sincere thanks to the National Housing Federation and the Chartered Institute of Housing for inviting me to do so.

    It is also a real pleasure to be back in Liverpool – a city region with a hugely ambitious regeneration pipeline and a strong commitment to maximising social and affordable housing delivery. I commend and thank Steve Rotherham and Liam Robinson for their continued leadership in this area.

    Our housing market is resilient, and I have no doubt that it will not take long to recover, but as this audience knows only too well, these are tough times for housebuilding in England.

    Margins continue to be squeezed by a combination of factors including a sharp reduction in interest cover and a significant increase in building materials costs – not least owing to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

    The resulting viability challenges are affecting every part of the country, with pressures particularly acute in some housing markets.

    As councils and housing associations seek to take forward ambitious development programmes, they are having to cope not only with challenges in relation to site viability but also those arising from the pressing need to improve the safety and quality of the homes they already manage.

    The government is asking a lot from the sector, and we appreciate fully the difficult balancing act involved in seeking to build new social and affordable housing at scale while also improving the decency of existing stock.

    That is why, throughout the 26 months that this government has been in office, we’ve striven to work in close partnership with you, listening carefully to what you have told us you need to deliver your social purpose, and doing as much as we possibly can to accommodate your asks.

    I intend to argue today that we have made significant progress since coming to office just over two years ago, but that much more can and will be done in the years ahead to ensure councils and housing associations, alone and, I hope, in deepening partnership, can flourish and play their full part in the decade of social and affordable housing renewal that this government remains determined to deliver.

    It is a natural human habit to bank what you have, take it for granted and ask for more, but I want to begin by reminding you all just how far we have come over the past two years and two months.

    It is almost three years to the day that I gave a keynote speech at the NHF’s National Housing Summit in Birmingham as the then Shadow Housing and Planning Minister.

    I remember well the general air of polite scepticism that greeted my speech and the series of bold commitments it contained:

    To enhance compulsory purchase powers.

    To provide long-term rent policy certainty.

    To overhaul the Right to Buy Scheme to better protect existing social housing stock.   

    To deliver a marked increase in affordable housing supply.

    And to prioritise social rented homes.

    As you all know, we have not only fulfilled those promises, we have gone much, much further.

    When it comes to grant funding, we’ve made the biggest investment in social and affordable housing in living memory – a £39 billion pound 10-year Social and Affordable Homes Programme with a target to deliver at least 60% of homes as Social Rent; a target that I’m delighted to say we are on course to exceed in the first wave of allocations announced a fortnight ago.

    When it comes to rebuilding the sector’s capacity to borrow and invest in new and existing homes, we’ve not only secured a 10-year social housing rent settlement at CPI+1% but also Social Rent convergence; equal access to government remediation funding schemes for social landlords; and £2.5 billion of low-interest loans over this Spending Review period.

    When it comes to reinvigorating council housebuilding, we’ve not only returned Right to Buy maximum cash discounts to pre-2012 levels and allowed councils to keep 100% of Right to Buy receipts, but through our Social Housing Bill we are taking forward a comprehensive and radical package of reforms to Right to Buy that will give councils the confidence they need to increase the delivery of new council homes.

    And when it comes to providing regulatory clarity and certainty, whether through our updated Decent Homes Standard, our new Minimum Energy Efficiency Standards or the implementation of Awaab’s Law, we have sought to ensure that standards are proportionate as well as ambitious with implementation timelines that will allow social landlords to boost housing supply at the same time as driving up the quality of the homes they manage.

    Taken together, these measures have laid the foundations for that decade of social and affordable housing renewal we are so determined to deliver.

    I’ve dwelt on them at some length because as we look to the future, it is important to acknowledge that the outlook for the sector has been utterly transformed over the past 26 months as a result of the decisions taken by this [political content removed] government.

    Yet, notwithstanding what has been achieved, I know that councils and housing associations across the country want and need more support and more funding to deliver the high-quality homes and services that residents and communities need.

    I also recognise that we issued a “call to arms” to everyone with a role in social and affordable housing to step up and demonstrate they could deliver at scale and at pace, and that precisely because the positive response has been so overwhelming we have not been able to give everyone what they asked for.

    This is particularly true when it comes to our Social and Affordable Homes Programme.

    As you know, a fortnight ago, we confirmed that Homes England is allocating just over £9.5 billion pounds to 33 Strategic Partners to deliver over 70,000 social and affordable homes outside London, with the Greater London Authority set to offer allocations of at least £6 billion in the capital.

    Sadly, the sum total of bids received by Homes England and the GLA dwarfed the amount of funding we had available to allocate in this initial wave.

    But with £39 billion of funding available over the lifetime of the Programme there is over £16 billion of funding outside London and around £5 billion in London still yet to allocate.

    This includes funding in each year of this Spending Review period up to 2030 and significant sums in the second half of the Programme. 

    In allocating this funding, we have made clear we intend to prioritise social rented homes and in particular council homes.

    But I want to stress again that funding will also be available for other providers.

    With that in mind, I reiterate our call to partners to come forward with strong bids in respect of specific sites, and Homes England stands ready to work intensively with you to exhaust all options. 

    I want to say a little more about council housebuilding given the emphasis our new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has rightly placed on it.

    Direct council delivery of Social Rent homes does have a range of benefits, including democratic accountability, the ability to tailor provision to meet local housing need, and the creation of public assets that generate rental income which is reinvested in local housing to support and sustain communities.

    It is also simply a fact that the last time we built social housing on the scale that is now required, councils were the driving force, delivering tens of thousands of social homes each year until building rates fell off dramatically from the early 1980s onwards as a result of the constraints and restrictions created by the introduction of the Right to Buy scheme. 

    It is for these reasons that we are determined to enable councils to once again build at scale and we know that hundreds of them share our ambition to secure the future of council housing. 

    The steps we have taken since arriving in office to reinvigorate council housebuilding, including providing tens of millions of pounds to increase skills and capacity within councils, have already borne fruit.

    In 2024/25, councils delivered the highest number of social homes since the current reporting period began in the early 1990s.

    I am also delighted that for the first time ever, three councils outside London have been awarded Strategic Partnership status with Homes England, namely Cambridge City Council, Eastleigh Borough Council and Newcastle City Council.

    But we need to go much further.

    The Prime Minister, the Secretary of State and I are determined to deliver the biggest council housebuilding programme since the post-war boom ended in the early 1980s.

    To that end, we are actively exploring further ways we might support councils to expand their stock of social homes, including low-cost borrowing options, and we’ve made clear that councils will be able to access more of the funding available through our Social and Affordable Homes Programme.

    Now, I can well imagine that having registered the renewed emphasis that the government is placing on council housebuilding, many housing associations and other providers may be questioning what it means for them.

    Let me reassure anyone who is in any doubt that private registered providers will continue to play a key role in the delivery of social and affordable homes.

    We value immensely all that you do to help meet housing need and we are relying on you to continue to progress ambitious development plans, not only delivering grant funded homes but also maximising homes built through Section 106 – drawing on the recently published National S106 Affordable Housing Engagement Guidance developed jointly by the NHF, CIH, HBF, and the LGA.

    And for any housing association or other provider that is concerned about their future in a world in which councils are once again building at scale, let me state plainly that the revival of council housebuilding that this government is working to deliver should complement not threaten the contribution you make.

    Indeed, we want to encourage greater partnership working between councils and housing associations whether that be through forming Joint Ventures, aligning development plans, delivering new council homes through partnership models, or working more closely on allocations.

    Our ambition is to harness the potential of everyone across the sector, and we want to hear your ideas about what effective partnership working looks like and what more government and Mayoral Strategic Authorities can do to support it.

    I believe passionately that good housing is the foundation of a flourishing life.

    Decent, safe, secure and affordable homes provide a platform for families to live, grow, and build better lives.

    They make for stronger, healthier and happier communities.

    Everyone, everyone, deserves to have one.

    Yet, as we all know, far too many families in need are still languishing on social housing waiting lists, struggling in the private rented sector or in expensive temporary accommodation as a result, and driving up rents and the housing benefit bill in the process.

    That is why this [political content removed] government committed in its manifesto to delivering the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation; to prioritising the building of new social rented homes; and to supporting councils and housing associations to build their capacity and make a greater contribution to affordable housing supply.

    Over the past two years, we have strained every sinew to faithfully honour those commitments.

    The steps we have taken today have made a real difference, with affordable starts up by 26% last year, and the highest number of social rent starts since 20101.

    But there is more to be done in the coming months and years to finish the job we have started.

    Whether council, housing association or other provider, we cannot do it without you.

    I very much look forward to continuing to work with you all as we deliver that decade of social and affordable housing renewal and in so doing ensure that all our people enjoy a decent, safe, secure, and affordable home in which to live.

    Thank you for listening.