Tag: Speeches

  • Andy Burnham – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Andy Burnham – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, in Liverpool on 29 September 2026.

    Thank you so much, Conference. Thank you.

    And Nadia, I love you Nadia. I am so proud of you, so proud of you up on the stage. Thank you.

    All Together Now. That’s my rallying call to the country today. When we pull as one, there is nothing we can’t do.

    Today we draw a line on a decade of division. We stop doomscrolling on posts running Britain down. And we put the country on a new path.

    Britain with belief again. People with hope again. 

    It’s very hard to put into words the emotion I feel standing here before you all.

    For me, life truly has come full circle because this is where my story began. My grandad drove a lorry along these docks for Tate & Lyle. 

    My gran Kitty inherited the drive of her Irish ancestors. She walked three miles out of the bombed-out city after the war to put a deposit down on a house, without Jimmy’s knowledge actually. I wouldn’t do that to you John, wherever you are Chancellor!

    She put a deposit down on a house. The house where I was born. It changed the fortunes of my family.

    It was where my mum and dad started off, built a partnership and went on to create our own family home and filled it with life, love and laughter.

    Eileen and Roy gave me a care for people. Forged by her faith, his politics and the values of this great city we are in again for our conference.

    They guided me to the point where I stand before you today.

    Ours is the same story of so many families, British families of my generation. A story of working-class aspiration. A desire to get on and give back, never pulling up the ladder. And a post-war Britain that backed them to do it. 

    It’s still there, as I saw in Stourbridge this summer. I watched a whole community getting stuck in to support those whose homes had been burnt down. Proof the British people haven’t changed. Still as great as they ever were. 

    But something is different these days. That sense of the powers-that-be pulling against the people not with them. If there’s one thing I want to put right, it’s that.

    Imagine living in a Britain where people feel the country has their got back again. A Britain for everyone, no matter who we are or where we’re born. We would be unstoppable. And we will be.

    Conference, I am 10 weeks into this job. And not all of my recent predecessors have been able to say that.

    I’ve been thinking very carefully about what to say to you today. Of course I am here to speak to you, our Labour family. The other family that love so much. 

    For the historic victory he achieved for us, I am here to say thank you Keir. And to thank you to the whole of this conference and all of you for the backing that you have given me.

    The politician in me wants to give the usual tub-thumping conference speech today. But the patriot in me tells me something very different is needed.

    This country isn’t where any of us would want it to be. Politics-as-usual has taken it backwards. More of the same isn’t good enough. That’s why I feel I have to break the mould today.

    I am going to give you a real speech. 

    I left Westminster a decade ago because of my frustration at its failure to face up to what happened at Hillsborough. Its refusal to treat all parts of the country equally and fairly. Its capitulation in the face of the social care crisis.

    So I became an outsider from the Westminster club. When I asked the people Makerfield to support my return, it was not because I missed Westminster so much. It was to come back to change it. To make politics work for you.

    Everyone can see the position Britain is in. Everyone knows things are not working as they should. Everyone is talking about how life is too expensive. Everyone wants less drift and more direction.

    Today I answer that call.

    Hope comes from honesty and we will have hope again. But first, honesty. It comes from saying the things politicians usually avoid.

    I will say it straight. Britain has been on the wrong path for a long time. Deindustrialisation. Deregulation. Privatisation. Austerity. Brexit.

    And what has it given us? A country run for vested interests. Not in the public interest. With power held in too few hands. And too many places left to drift. 

    I am ready to do things my predecessors wouldn’t. I will make a break with the direction of the past 40 years and put Britain on a new path.

    Build a new economy and a new politics. That is the case I make to you today. 

    Conference, change will be difficult. It always is. But I know we can do it. Because we have done it before.

    In 1945, we had the vision to win the peace. We had the bravery to make change. We built good homes, secure jobs, health and education for everyone. We gave Britain hope again.

    We made working-class aspiration feel real for families like mine. We built the common good. Or at least we did until the 1980s.

    Suddenly, the common wealth we had created, this party, the wealth we had created for the many was seen as an opportunity for the few.

    Homes. Water. Energy. Transport. Care. Broken up and sold off.

    The British Right talk about ‘taking back control’. Never let them forget, they are the ones that gave it away in the first place.

    Economic control diminished by selling off essentials. Political control corroded by the hollowing out of councils. Immigration control weakened by Brexit.

    Later this year, we will publish our plan for Britain and set out how, over 10 years, we will make this country work for you again.

    More control of the basics so that we can make it more functional. More power in the hands of people and places to set their own ambitions. And from there, good growth in every postcode, hope in every heart.

    Our journey starts where I started, in the Old Roan, not far from here. With housing. A home. 

    That home on Keeble Drive unlocked the aspiration in my mum and dad for a better life for us all and has taken us to places we could never have imagined.

    With a good home, everything is possible. Without one, it feels like nothing is.

    Kids can’t have a good start in life. Families can’t have good health, physical and mental health. Over a million people are in that position on housing waiting lists – almost exactly the same number as the homes we lost through Right-to-Buy in the 1980s.

    I will not rest until we live in a Britain where everyone has a roof over their head every night and no one is forced to sleep rough on our streets.

    On my first day in this job, on the steps of Downing Street, I set an immediate mission to end the need for rough sleeping. Everyone In. Our new permanent national policy.

    Putting the right principles and standards back at the heart of this country. The care for people I got from my mum and dad at the heart of the running of the British state. 

    From there, the biggest council house building programme since the post-war era, led by Angela Rayner.

    And I am specific about council homes because we need to restore stronger democratic control over our housing stock.

    We will help councils build again and make it affordable by building on unused public land. We will reform Right-to-Buy. Not taking the right away from anyone in an existing home. But removing it from the new homes we build so they are there for generations to come.

    Rebuilding our common wealth. Restoring the public housing stock to what it once was, not just by building new but acting on the private rented stock too. 

    Go to almost any town across Britain and you will see plenty of empty homes. We will give councils the power to take control of them and bring them back into the public housing stock. 

    You will see rented homes in a poor state of repair too on so many British streets. Homes which harm the health of the people inside and drag down the streets around them.

    The worst of it? Often owned by absent landlords who are paid through the benefits system but refuse to reinvest anything in the upkeep of the property.

    It is time to call an end to this. Landlords who rent out the worst quality homes will be given warnings to improve them. If they refuse, we will make it much easier for councils to acquire those homes and we will legislate if necessary.

    We don’t let people sell food which damages health. So why allow it with homes? From now on, we won’t.

    This is what I mean about taking back control with our communities.

    But I also want to get back to a Britain where young people starting out are able to buy a home like my mum and dad did. Like I did.

    They have had it tougher than us. Working hard, paying bills, trying to save but looking at a student loan which never gets any smaller.

    Today I say to them we are bringing back the hope you can have a home of your own. 

    Your First Home will reduce the size of the deposit you need. It will open up home ownership to those not backed by the bank of mum and dad.

    And we promise we will not forget our promises to leaseholders. We will introduce a Bill before Christmas for long overdue Leasehold Reform.

    To the millions of leaseholders across the country, you have my word. The days of you being squeezed for every penny are coming to an end.

    Conference, this is the break we are making with the flawed thinking of the last 40 years. 

    Not seeing housing only as a market with winners and losers, but as an essential everyone needs for a good life.

    And the next stage of our journey is to apply that same philosophy to the most basic thing of all. 

    Water is a symbol of what has gone wrong with Britain. A service where the shareholders never lose and the public never win. From which some have syphoned out easy money while the public picked up the bill for the sewage in our seas.

    It stinks. I will not allow it to continue like this.

    Today I can confirm Angela Eagle will present a strengthened Water Bill to Parliament. The centrepiece of that Bill will be this – the repeal of Margaret Thatcher’s ideological ban on public ownership of water companies.

    It will start a 10-year journey to a very different water system. 

    It will strengthen public control. Mayors will have new powers to hold water companies to account, with tougher consequences for those which repeatedly fail. It will close the loopholes used to pay excessive bonuses.

    Where private companies serve the public interest, we will support them. But the consequences will be clear for those who do not, including taking back control or public ownership.

    Conference, when people hear the phrase public control, I am sure some think it’s anti-business. It’s the opposite.

    Businesses need the basics to be functional and affordable too, as does the wider economy. As someone said to me recently, there’s a reason why you can’t build all over the Water Works and the Electric Company on the Monopoly board. 

    One of the biggest barriers to growth in the UK is the cost of energy. British businesses and billpayers pay some of the highest energy costs in Europe. 

    Within 10 years, I want those costs to be in line with our neighbours. 

    This means reforming a broken energy market so it better serves the public interest. 

    We are already taking more control of our electricity prices with a massive expansion of home-grown renewables and nuclear. I have asked Miatta to speed up the breaking of the link between what we pay for power at home and the international gas market, to get bills down. 

    And we will be pragmatic in relation to the North Sea as we build a bridge to a clean energy future and face the climate crisis. 

    But it’s not just the price. The system needs to work better too. You would not believe how many businesses complain to me they can’t get going because they can’t get connected to the grid.  

    It pushes costs up. It drags growth down. And it holds Britain back. We won’t get the growth and inward investment we need if we don’t fix it.

    So, for the first time, we will have a national energy plan and we will bring back local democratic control through a stronger role for mayors and local leaders. 

    But we must go further. Today I can announce our plan for Great British Grid. A new branch of Great British Energy. A publicly-owned company that will challenge the private sector operators. 

    It will increase competition, drive down costs and speed up connections so businesses can expand and grow more quickly.   

    Energy, water, housing. Back under stronger public control. We rely on them, we pay for them and once again we will have power over them.

    I realise people can’t wait forever for change though. They need breathing space now. And I am determined to provide it.

    I can say to everyone watching, you will see VAT disappear off your electricity bill this Thursday. I didn’t expect a standing ovation for that but I’ll take it. Thank you, Conference!

    From January, you will be able to travel for the whole of 2027 anywhere in England paying no more than £2 for a single bus journey. You knew I wouldn’t get through a conference speech without mentioning buses, didn’t you?

    These things are not everything but I hope you will see it as a sign, a strong one, of our intent to get your bills and fares down as you wait for the bigger changes to come.

    I would love to go quicker. But I have to be honest about what the country can afford. I will stick to our fiscal rules to get borrowing and debt down. 

    The approach I am outlining today is the responsible one. If we build a generation of council homes, we will save billions from the housing benefit budget over the decade.

    If we get energy bills down, we will better control inflation and support the economy. 

    If we change the way we support people, we will get more people into work and the welfare bill down. 

    Not through crude cuts. That should never be the Labour way. 

    But by investing in people in their success, supporting them to get where they want to be, rather than paying for failure as the country does now. 

    Our plan for public control is a plan for growth, growth of people, places and businesses.

    The truth is this. When we gave up public control, we left people exposed. Just when it was getting harder to grow up and harder to grow old.

    Support has been cut away from young and old. And that leaves the country paying for failure on a grand scale.

    Almost a million young people not working or learning. Thousands of older people stuck in hospital because of the lack of good home care. 

    We can’t afford to carry on like this.

    In 1945 we had the Beveridge Report. We need something similar now. A new social contract for the 21st century.

    You know of my long-held ambitions to reform social care. When I was a new MP in the early 2000s, I despaired at what I saw when my gran Kitty went through the system. 

    I winced at the pain it caused my mum. My gran’s engagement ring ripped from her finger and stolen in a care home. Care not worthy of the name.

    And the modest savings she had built up through her life, starting from the house where I was born? All taken to pay for it.

    I vowed then to fight for something better for my parents’ generation. And here we are 25 years later. If anything, it’s worse today than it was then.

    What an indictment of my generation of politicians, myself included. Too cowardly to fix something as basic as the care we give to each other.

    Is it any wonder people are giving up on politics?

    I watched closely the people who looked after my dad. Caring for other people’s parents on poverty pay, but doing it with huge skill, humour and humanity.

    Holding a threadbare system somehow together.

    Yet invisible to the political class of this country.

    I want to speak directly today to our care workers.

    You are not invisible to me.

    I see you.

    I thank you.

    And I am sorry that my profession has let down yours for so long.

    I promise you: I won’t leave this job without doing everything I can to change things for you.

    And I say the same to our wonderful NHS staff.

    We have let you down too.

    Left you under intolerable pressure.

    At risk of burn-out.

    Dealing with 999 calls from a failing care system.

    Corridor care your daily reality.

    If we carry on like this, Conference, broken social care will break the NHS too.

    And we can’t let that happen, we must never let that happen, this party that founded the National Health Service.

    There is only one real answer.

    A person-centred, high-quality care service that starts in the home.

    A system in the best traditions of this party, where everyone contributes and everyone is covered.

    Free at the point of use and no care charges paid out of your basic state pension.

    Care that is about people not profit. 

    Which gives peace of mind over care needs in later life.

    Which protects people’s homes and their savings.

    And gives proper recognition to the care workers we will all need to rely on at some point in our lives.

    Conference, this is the National Care Service we will build.

    We will, we will. Thank you, Conference. 

    We’re going to do it. We are going to do it.

    A landmark policy as significant as the creation of the NHS itself.

    And utterly essential to securing its future.

    NHS savings from fewer ambulance call-outs, A&E admissions and vulnerable people being stuck unnecessarily in hospital.

    We will start laying the ground now for the National Care Service and introduce it in the next Parliament. 

    Louise Casey’s review will advise us on exactly how and Yvette and I will seek to build the maximum national consensus around her recommendations.   

    It will be fully funded, and not through borrowing.

    Conference, I won’t pretend some of this won’t be difficult.

    I accept I may pay a political price.

    But someone has to go through the pain barrier and rip the plaster off.

    It’s the leadership I promised you when I asked to be your leader and I will do it.

    But I’ll be honest as well.

    We promised in our manifesto to keep the Triple Lock unchanged throughout this Parliament. 

    I will honour that promise.

    I will honour that promise, and I will do more.

    That promise will take the state pension to a record high.

    From there, in April 2030, we will adjust it.

    The state pension will continue to rise every year at least by prices or 2.5%.

    And it will hold its value relative to earnings over time so that pensioners will always share in the rising prosperity of the nation.

    But this change will generate significant savings which we will use to build up our National Care Service.

    Some may not realise it but older people with nothing more than the state pension, or only a little more, can find themselves paying care charges today from that small income.

    Under my plan, this will no longer happen.

    I can also confirm today our commitment to ensure that the low-income pensioners won’t be dragged into paying income tax in this Parliament.

    So this is the deal.

    A state pension that rises every year.

    No care charges.

    And a high-quality National Care Service to give peace of mind in later life. 

    Conference, I am going to go out and argue for that.

    A good deal for our pensioners and for older people in the 21st century.

    And I will do it in memory of my dad and out of complete respect for everyone who cared for him.

    Conference, we will need to show the same boldness for our young people too.

    Just when growing up got harder in the social media age, their support was stripped away.

    Youth services practically abolished in the 2010s.

    Children’s mental health services cut.

    Families left to battle for support for kids with special educational needs and disabilities.

    So many young people cast adrift by a school system built for some, not all, overly focused on the university route and not enough on technical education.

    Should we be really surprised that the numbers of late teens and early 20s on benefits has grown?

    Conference, it’s not their fault. It’s ours.

    Politicians fail to give people, young people, the support they need as they grow up in a tougher world and then threaten them in their 20s that they will strip away what they’re left with.

    How is that fair? How does that build a strong society?

    We have a choice, Conference.

    Either we invest in our young people.

    Or we pay for failure through the benefits system.

    Truthfully, we can’t afford to do both.

    My choice is to invest in them.

    We can’t retake control of the country’s future if we leave so many of our young people drifting towards it.

    We await the final report from Alan Milburn’s review.

    But I can say now we will change the education system and the welfare system. 

    We will rebuild a system of comprehensive education in this country with parity between academic and technical, with Lucy Powell leading the way.

    Good quality pathways for all from 14.

    And the right support for our young people when they need it.

    A 45-day work placement between 16 and 18.

    An apprenticeship at 18.

    And no long waits anymore for mental health support growing up.

    We will need a fundamental rethink of the welfare system to find the money for these opportunities upfront.

    And we will require young people to take up the help presented to them – guaranteeing in-work support and not leaving those out of work losing confidence and connection.  

    This is a different approach to welfare. 

    It is based on a philosophy of social security.

    A country which invests in people’s success, rather than abandoning them and paying for failure, will be much more resilient to the shocks we will undoubtedly face in the rest of this century.

    And more able to meet its NATO obligations on defence.

    This leadership we are showing at home will be matched on the international stage. 

    I will be steadfast in my support for Ukraine and stand up to threats wherever they come from. Whether Russia, Iran or anywhere.

    And Conference, we will be principled in our leadership in securing a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, as Ed Miliband has shown.

    This is the Labour way. A plan for Britain that will enhance our social security and our national security.

    You don’t make Britain safer by leaving a younger generation without hope stuck at home looking at screens. 

    You do it by giving young people hope again. 

    And you do it by getting our economy growing strongly again.

    I know Britain is full of brilliant businesses who want our young people to succeed and want to employ them.

    And we will help them do that and grow together.

    I have a theory of growth.

    It starts by retaking control of the essentials that make a place work or not.

    You’ve got to have that control over the fundamental things that everybody needs.

    And from there you devolve more power to places to put them in charge and decide their own destiny.

    And then in doing those things we optimise the conditions for businesses to grow.


    And make sure we support our people so they are there for our business to employ.

    Conference, I developed this approach over a decade leading the country’s fastest-growing city region.

    And I could not have been more proud to hand over to Bev Craig as the new Mayor of Greater Manchester.

    It’s like the other way round from when Alex Ferguson handed over to David Moyes, I think this is David Moyes handing over to Alex Ferguson.

    We have a theory of growth, and we built it with Steve too when we left Westminster together, and with the other mayors who are with us today.

    And you can see the change, you can feel it in this city, can’t you. 

    Amazing isn’t it, to be here, to see it every year, because we come back every year. 

    We see the change every year, and how good is that to see.

    And we want it everywhere, don’t we, every place represented in this conference hall here today. 

    And that’s what I intend to do.

    I intend to take what I did in Manchester, our plan for good growth, and drive it from the very centre of Government into every postcode in Britain.

    Number 10 North, in lockstep with John and the Treasury, overseeing the rewiring of the British state, the rebuilding of resilience in our communities and the re-industrialisation of our regions. 

    Changing government procurement so that it backs British business, as our trade unions have rightly pushed us to do.

    And that will require culture change in Whitehall.

    The Mayor of the Liverpool City Region should not have had to fight Whitehall as hard as he did to get a new ferry built on the banks of the River Mersey.

    And what a job he is doing.

    Liverpool growing faster than the UK economy.

    How often have we been able to say that in our lifetimes? What a brilliant thing to be able to say.

    Places written off by the powers-that-be in the past now proving them wrong.

    Bringing big names in AI like Kyndryl into the city. 

    I see huge potential for more of this in every part of Britain.

    I see start-ups and scale-ups pouring out of our world-class universities.

    I see businesses up and down the country playing their part and ready to do more.

    As Gordon Brown has said, we can be the world’s innovation nation, and he’s right, we can.

    A nation trusted by others to be a global leader in AI, an honest broker 

    When Britain takes the Presidency of the G20 next year, I will show our new-found confidence as a country, and I will show it to the world by putting AI centre stage and Britain will then work to develop a new global code to capture its benefits whilst being clear-eyed about its risks.

    Just as Gordon did in the financial crisis in 2008, so Britain will do it again, step forward, and bring people together around what’s right for the future.

    Securing our prosperity, but also our safety, and particularly the safety of our young people.

    We led the world first’s industrial revolution from the Midlands and the North of England.

    So why can’t we lead the next?

    We can, Conference.

    And we will.

    We are a country full of working-class aspiration.

    And we will be the Government that unlocks it.

    Conference, there is one final thing we need to change if our plan for Britain is to succeed.

    Our politics.

    Westminster prizes point-scoring over problem-solving.

    And that is why so many things go unfixed for so long.

    If we want to change Britain, we need to change ourselves.

    I will work as hard as I can to get as much cross-party support for our plan for Britain.

    If we can secure that, it will project a message of confidence and stability to markets and the world about Britain’s future direction.

    It is why I decided to make this a very different conference speech.

    We can’t succeed in the eyes of the world if we continue with the levels of political turbulence we have seen in recent times.

    It is always in my mind that I’m the seventh Prime Minister in ten years. 

    It is why I want to underpin our plan for Britain with a new politics.  

    We will all have failed in our public duties if we carry on as we are and open the door of Number 10 to a divisive government on less than 30% of the vote.

    Conference, in past years you have voted twice to support electoral reform. 

    I hear you, I agree with you and today I am announcing a new national commission on electoral reform.

    I invite all the political parties to be part of its work.

    We will contest the next election with a manifesto commitment to change the electoral system so that everyone’s vote counts and everyone’s voice is heard.

    As you can see, what I am outlining is a more serious and thought-through prospectus for the future of Britain than people have been offered in a generation.

    I appreciate some of it is difficult. 

    I accept people, including in this hall, will not agree with every part of it.

    But I believe this is what we need, small things will not get us through what are difficult times.

    We need to be bigger and to have the courage of our convictions.

    I believe we can turn Britain around, but it requires us to think bigger about what we need to do.

    I will try my best to find common ground.

    But let me be clear.

    Where I can’t agree with others, I will fight hard for what I believe to be right and what I believe to be in the best interests of this country.

    On the day my dad died, the Scottish First Minister said I would be the last Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

    I quote that not to seek sympathy.

    Nor to criticise John Swinney, I don’t think he knew the news at the time.

    And anyway, my dad Roy would have been the first to defend his right to say it.

    I relay it because I want you to know how it made me feel.

    Utterly determined to prove him wrong.

    Whatever its flaws, this country gave my dad a good life.

    And it has given his sons opportunities he didn’t get for himself.

    He recognised that and was grateful for it.

    And so proud of what Nick, John and I did with them.

    If only, if only he had been able to appreciate that moment of the family in Downing Street.

    The son of a man who failed his 11-plus becoming Prime Minister.

    The fact it could even happen in this country would not have been lost on him.

    He could have gone to university himself, but times were different then so it wasn’t an option.

    But he voted every time, religiously for the Labour governments which changed education so his sons could do that.

    The United Kingdom my dad represented is the one I believe in.

    A union of nations that gave trade unions and the cooperative movement to the world.

    The National Health Service.

    A country that stood up to fascism.

    A country of solidarity not separation.

    That’s the Britain my dad represented.

    Britain is not perfect. It can be better and we will make it so.

    But it still stands for something worth saving, worth fighting for.

    And we will always be stronger facing a changing world together, rather than separating.

    So I am going to use this job to build the kind of Britain my dad wanted to see – and fight with everything I’ve got to keep it together.

    Not the last Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

    Rather the first to rewire it to make it work for all people and places.

    Driving power out of Whitehall and into every postcode of Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and England and closing divides between people and places.

    The first Prime Minister to make a break with politics-as-usual. 

    I believe the plan I have outlined today will not just hold us together, it will allow us to rise again.

    Britain to rise again.

    And we will be a Britain again confident of our place in the world.

    It has changed dramatically since 2016.

    And, in the spirit of this speech, we have to be honest.

    Brexit hasn’t given us control.

    We’ve lost some of the control we had over our economy, as a decade of low growth has put us in a weaker position.

    And we’ve lost some of our control over immigration.

    At its most fundamental level, this is a debate about fairness.

    So I understand the anger about what is happening in the Channel.

    Shabana has done a great job in beginning to restore our grip over the system.

    People arriving on small boats down 40% on the last year, 50% from the early 2020s.

    Net migration down more than 80% since the peak of the Boris Johnson era.

    Conference, we make these changes but we will always grateful – always, and we thank them – to those whose who have come here and are contributing to our country.

    Than you, to them.

    But control over immigration was weakened when we lost collaboration with our European partners.

    And we are still having to work hard to bring it back.

    Later this year, there will be a UK-EU summit where one of the issues on the agenda will be how we best work together on immigration.

    And beyond that we will work to secure gains for our industries most harmed by Brexit.

    Conference, these are important concrete steps.

    But they are not enough.

    I say this to you and the country.

    We will not give Britain the clear path we need into the rest of the century until we decide on a long-term relationship with what is still our largest market.

    I cannot say to you truthfully that where we are is good enough.

    Brexit has done more harm than good.

    We need to restore a higher level of growth and prosperity for Britain.  

    So, I will take the opportunity around the summit to lay out to you, to lay out to the country, what I believe the different options are for Britain’s long-term relationship with our European partners.

    And there are different options.


    And I will see if we can find consensus around one which will give us clarity about our position, and the future of the continent we live in.

    Well, Conference, I did warn you this speech would be different, didn’t I?

    But I think this moment in our country’s history requires it.

    1945.

    1964.

    1997.

    Now.

    All moments of Labour governments.

    All moments which saw Britain rediscover a sense of hope.

    When I walked up Downing Street on my first day in the job, I promised to give Britain a circuit breaker.

    To get us out of the rut we’ve been in.

    To get us believing again.

    I say to this to everyone watching at home.

    You may disagree with some or all of what I have said today.

    But I have given you what you often say is missing from politics.  

    Honesty, ideas and a clear direction for the country we all love.

    I now want to make a direct appeal to you.

    If you agree with enough of what I have said, get behind this plan. 

    And get behind each other.

    It’s time to draw a line.

    To move beyond a decade of drift and division.

    To bring a spirit of unity and positivity back to our country.

    To unlock the working-class aspiration that is still there in every postcode in this great land.

    All Together Now.

    We can do it.

    We will believe again.

    We will hope again.

    Thank you, Conference.

  • Shabana Mahmood – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Shabana Mahmood – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, in Liverpool on 28 September 2026.

    Thank you. Thank you, Conference.

    Before I begin, let me address the events of yesterday morning outside RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire.

    I would like to thank the police. For their swift response to the situation. We must allow them to continue their work and not fuel any speculation. Particularly as this could prejudice investigations.

    But I can say this: The nationalities of those responsible are now known. And they are all British citizens.

    I can also say that thanks to the excellent work of the Army’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal team the scene is now safe. And the residents of Whelford will shortly be returning home. I thank them for their cooperation. And, more than that, for their spirit of resilience. They represent the very best of our country.

    Now, while I will not comment further on the specific incident. It is a reminder that at a time of heightened threat we must all remain vigilant.

    And to all those who mean us harm and plot violence on our soil. Let this be a reminder: You will never defeat us.

    Conference, a year ago I became Home Secretary. On this stage last year, I told you it was the honour of my life. And I meant it. This year, I stand before you to report back on a first year in office.

    As I do so, I could stand here and list the facts.

    Knife crime: down.

    Serious violence: down.

    Net migration: down.

    Small boat crossings: down.

    I could point out that no Home Secretary in recent history has been able to say any of that. And that is a tribute to the work of this Government and my ministerial team. It is also a tribute to my predecessor, Yvette Cooper, who laid the foundations we have built upon.

    But I don’t only want to talk about what this Government is doing. Nor even what we are achieving. Instead, I want to talk to you about why we are doing it.

    Why must a Labour Home Secretary restore control at our border? Why must a Labour Home Secretary cut crime? Why must a Labour Home Secretary keep our communities and our homeland safe?

    The answer goes back to why this party exists. The thing that brought us all into politics: Fairness.

    The job of a Labour Home Secretary, just as the job of every Labour Government, is to make this country fairer.

    Let me tell you why this matters to me.

    My parents came to this country from rural Kashmir because they knew they would get a fair shot at a better life here. A fairer shot than they could ever expect back home. Where past was precedent. And where your birth dictated your future.

    They were, largely, welcomed to this country. Because most Brits thought it was right to welcome people who came here legally, built a new life, and contribute to our nation.

    There were exceptions to that welcome, of course. This was the 1970s. But they were exceptions, not the rule.

    Fairness is what unites us in this country. And a fair society unlocks the very best of us. Because when people think this country is fair. They are more open and generous to others.

    When we are secure in ourselves, we are more tolerant too. Because the existence of one group does not threaten another. And so, a proud Muslim like me can be a proud Brit and a Brummie too.

    When fairness isn’t present, the opposite is true. When this country feels unfair. People turn inwards. A Britain that is unfair is one that is smaller and colder for those who look like me.

    So my job is to create that fairness. In our immigration system. And on our streets. And, in doing so, to hold this country together. At a time when others seek to divide us.

    Conference, there is nothing fair about a lack of control at our borders. It is not fair that criminal gangs determine who comes to this country.

    It is not fair that they put dangerous boats into the water with no regard for human life. Shown once again today, with three more tragic deaths in the Channel.

    It is not fair that those with a genuine need of protection cannot find a safe and legal way to claim asylum.

    It is also not fair that communities across this country have been asked to bear so great a burden, with around 90,000 people living in asylum accommodation.

    For that reason, to restore fairness, we must restore control.

    That work has begun and is bearing fruit. We are turning the tables on the criminal gangs. We have stopped over 48,000 attempted crossings. And small boat arrivals are down significantly with this summer recording the lowest number since 2021.

    Fairness isn’t only about control. Fairness is also about offering sanctuary to those who are truly fleeing war and persecution.

    So as we tackle the gangs and reduce the incentives that draw people here illegally. We are also opening new, capped safe and legal routes.

    I know that the British people have not given up on their belief that we should be compassionate, live up to our international obligations, and save the lives of those fleeing war and persecution.

    But I also know this process must be capped and controlled, with communities ready and able to welcome those who come here.

    For that reason, I can announce today that from next month, we will begin accepting applications from charities and nonprofits to sponsor refugees through our new safe and legal routes.

    This will start with a community sponsorship route allowing local communities to host refugees. And a student sponsorship route which will allow universities to do the same.

    Applications will open in October. With the first arrivals in autumn of next year.

    Applications for sponsors for a further work route will open in the Spring of next year.

    And that is not all, Conference.

    I can also announce that this Government will reopen the UK Resettlement Route in partnership with the United Nations.

    We will take vulnerable refugees from across the world and give them the chance of a new and better life here in Britain with the first arrivals this year.

    I am proud to say that around a quarter will be Afghan women and girls fleeing persecution under the Taliban.

    And Palestinians who have fled the horrors of Gaza.

    Conference, conference, that is what we can do, this is who we can be, as we restore control to our borders. Bear down on small boat crossings. And unlock the inherent generosity of this country.

    As we restore control and fairness to our asylum system. We must do the same for legal migration too: Fair to those who seek a new and better life here, like my parents did. And fair to those already here, including British workers, and especially the young.

    That same principle underpins my reforms to the right to live here indefinitely. Ensuring settled status is earned by those who have shown a consistent commitment to this country.

    I know that, throughout our consultation process some have said elements of these reforms are not fair.

    And to that, let me say this: we will come to a position that balances fairness for those who came here legally and fairness to British citizens across this country.

    Fairness cannot end at our borders. It must extend to every street in this country.

    While you might not believe it, from all the false talk of a broken Britain. Some of the most serious crimes that we face in this country are falling, and falling fast.

    Murder is down by 9 percent.

    Serious violence by 11 percent.

    And knife robberies by 16 percent.

    These are extraordinary successes. And they are what happens when we have a Labour Government in power.

    But it is also true that our steps forward have not been true everywhere. If you are the victim of crime in one part of this country, you could be two and a half times more likely to see that crime solved than if you live elsewhere.

    Meanwhile, across the country, certain crimes, particularly those that tear at the fabric of a local community are still too high. Like shop theft, which though now falling, is still far too high.

    To achieve fairness in every community, we need to do some things we know work, like neighbourhood policing. Which was hollowed out under the Conservative government but which we know cuts crime and deters criminality.

    I am proud to say that this Government has put 3,800 more officers into neighbourhoods across the country.

    But if we are to police every community fairly, we must also police differently.

    I have long argued that the criminal justice system has failed to respond effectively to the scourge of violence against women and girls.

    In our landmark strategy, we seek to right that wrong. And I am proud to have recently announced that every police force in England and Wales will soon have specialist officers trained in the delicate and difficult work of investigating these heinous crimes.

    Better policing also demands new policing structures.

    And that is why this Government will launch the National Police Service focused entirely on national and international crime.

    We are also reviewing the structure of local forces to ensure every part of this country has excellent neighbourhood policing as well as access to the specialist policing that we know every community needs deserves.

    Since we took office. We have taken major steps forward.

    But it is still too often true that where you live determines what you get. We will only have a fair country when we have security in every home.

    That is not just a British value. It is a Labour value.

    When we are secure in our homes, we open our doors to others. When we feel unsafe, we bolt the door to outsiders and those who are different from us.

    Safety at home unlocks the generosity of spirit that this party knows is within us all.

    I know, personally, that this doesn’t always feel true today. I know the fear that some communities have felt in recent times. The sense that the forces of division in our country are growing stronger, while the unifying voices grow weaker.

    I have felt the same shiver of revulsion and fear at the sight of racists, masked up and dressed all in black. Whose actions are designed to threaten communities like mine.

    I know that other communities have felt the same fear. Like British Jews, facing the rising tide of antisemitism. And targeted by the hostile acts of foreign powers who plot violence against our fellow countrymen and women.

    This country is only truly fair when we are all safe within it.

    So, I am proud of the work we have done to tackle extremism, in all its forms. And I am proud of the State Threats Act which we passed at pace to tackle hostile foreign powers seeking to operate and sow division in this country.

    I know there is more we must do to tackle the threats ranged against us.

    And I think particularly of the new and growing threat posed by young minds warped online and alone which we will begin to address in legislation announced in the King’s Speech later this year.

    Once again. And with particular resonance today. I must thank those who protect us, day and night, in policing and our intelligence services.

    Their successes are rarely seen. But – as I know all too well. We are all safer, each and every day, for their presence.

    They protect us all, without fear or favour, and we all thank them for it.

    Safety, security and control.

    Some say these aren’t Labour values.

    Conference, they are wrong.

    These are the preconditions for a society that is fair. And that drive towards fairness is what brought this party into being and every single one of us into this hall.

    So when the Tories in the Tory Party and the failed Tories in the Reform Party try to pretend otherwise. Let’s just remind them of their record:

    Losing control of our borders.

    Hollowing out policing on our streets.

    Fourteen years of making this country less safe. Less secure. Out of control. And unfair.

    By restoring safety, security and control. We are restoring fairness and creating space for compassion, tolerance, and generosity.

    And that is why the numbers I started with in this speech with matter:

    Knife crime: down.

    Serious violence: down.

    Net migration: down.

    Small boat crossings: down.

    That is how we make this country fairer. That is how we defeat the forces of division. That is how we hold this country together.

    Conference, it is what a Labour Government does.

    It is why a Labour Government exists.

    And it is why I remain so proud to be your Labour Home Secretary.

    Thank you, Conference.

  • Jonathan Reynolds – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Jonathan Reynolds – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, in Liverpool on 28 September 2026.

    Thank you conference. Thank you Tom. Tom, it’s a privilege to have you with us today and that introduction, and those words, mean a great deal to me.

    Conference, it’s good to be back. 

    Now some of you know I think, when I was a younger MP, some people used to say I looked a bit like Prince William. I tell you, twelve months as Government Chief Whip, I think I definitely now look more like George V. Five generations!

    But conference, it is good to be back. Back to deliver for workers with our game-changing employment rights act. Back to deliver for British business so they can invest and innovate and grow. And back to reindustrialise every corner of our country, bringing jobs, growth and hope to every postcode.

    And make no mistake, conference, we cannot and we will not succeed in that historic mission unless we work together with business, with entrepreneurs and with our great science, technology and innovation base.

    And conference, I appreciate that it can be tricky to come to the great city of Liverpool and talk about the other great city down the road. But bear with me, because this is a story about the growth and renewal that I believe we can deliver across the whole of the United Kingdom.

    When I was 18, I arrived from Sunderland to the bright lights of Manchester. Now back then, Manchester looked very different too. The scars of deindustrialisation still visible. 

    But today, Greater Manchester is a blueprint for what happens when we get things right, for what can be achieved when political leaders, business leaders and civic society work together, and where power isn’t hoarded in the centre of government but used to give people what they need for their area to succeed.

    And that story, that renaissance, led by our Prime Minister Andy Burnham, is a story I want to see for the whole country. And that is why conference it’s at the heart of our aim to reindustrialise Britain. 

    Reindustrialisation isn’t nostalgia. The sectors of the future aren’t just about ideas. They rely on hard infrastructure and physical production. They create good jobs. And I refuse to let Britain be a country that generates the great ideas, only for other countries to build and scale them.

    So I am delighted to lead a new department that combines the brilliance of our science base with the dynamism of British industry, so that ideas from our world-class universities become semiconductors manufactured in Durham, so that critical minerals mined in Cornwall power the next generation of AI chips, or so that life science discoveries in Cambridge become NHS treatments sooner.

    That is what our modern Industrial Strategy is all about. Inventing it here, making it here and creating the good jobs here.

    And, while the economy has grown per head, every quarter, with this Labour Government, make no mistake conference, we all know we have much more to do.

    More to do for the small business, struggling because they haven’t been paid on time. More to do for our incredible services sectors, who need barriers knocking down to deliver in every part of the world. And more to do for the workers, the people delivering this growth, the people I meet every time I step foot on a factory floor.

    Conference, that is who I think about every day I am lucky enough to do this job. 

    That’s why our science budget is the largest it has ever been. It’s why our expanded Growth Guarantee Scheme is getting money to small business. It’s why the British Business Bank not only has more capital to deploy, it has dedicated regional funds so that no part of the UK will miss out.

    So to the communities who saw good jobs go decades ago and still don’t feel they’ve replaced them – which is as true in parts of the South as it is in the North – my message is simple. We see you, we hear you, and we have a plan to reindustrialise Britain.

    And conference, let us always celebrate the things that make this country great. The things we will never stop defending against those who only seek to talk Britain down.

    Let’s not listen to the mantra of misery from the Tories and Reform. For them, Britain can’t be seen to succeed, because if it did, there would be no way for them to profit from the politics of division and grievance.

    And don’t get me wrong conference, of course there are challenges. But the difference with Labour is we’re about providing answers, not lashing out in anger.

    We don’t bury our heads in the sand, we tackle the big issues head on. And nowhere is that more true than where we’re fixing the industries the Tories left to squander.

    Take steel. It was a proud national asset, left for years in severe neglect. Workers like Tom, unions and their communities, ignored. 

    And I didn’t do it lightly, conference, but the day this Labour Government stood up for steel, stood up for Scunthorpe, and took control of British Steel, was one of the proudest days of my life.

    You know, as Tom described, when British Steel was on the brink, they did have to come and say to me, Secretary of State, you don’t have the power to stop this. And, to be fair, they were right.

    But I knew I had to stop the kind of industrial devastation that has left too many places in the UK have felt in our history.

    I knew what was right, and I knew I had 400 friends in Parliament, my fellow Labour MPs, who would be willing to come back on a Saturday and give me the power I needed to make a difference.

    Most of all, I knew I had you. Decent, ordinary people, who have come together to build a extraordinary, political movement to make sure that wealth and power isn’t just available to those who are already wealthy and powerful.

    That’s what this Party was founded to do. 

    And that’s why we will also deliver the transformation at Port Talbot to guarantee a strong future for Welsh steel making. And it’s why we have also refused to let Speciality Steel in South Yorkshire go to the wall. 

    And to all of those working right now in our historic automotive sector, at JLR, at Toyota, and the people I am proud to be of and from, Nissan in Sunderland, let me tell you, I will never stop fighting for automotive jobs and for those sites to continue to be the jewels in the crown of the UK’s advanced manufacturing sector.

    And on trade, conference let’s never forget that this Government has succeeded where the Tories failed.

    We’ve done a deal with the fastest growing economy in the world, India. We’ve done a deal with the biggest economy in the world, the US. And we’ve done a deal with our largest trading partner, the EU.

    We won’t fight the battles of the past, but we will always work alongside the countries that are not just our closest partners, but our fellow European brothers and sisters.

    And conference, I am also proud that for us, trade is about Labour values. Just as we’ve shown in Israel and Palestine, making sure our commitment to a two state solution is a real one.

    Now finally conference, I know the other parties don’t like our New Deal for Working People. They’ve made it quite clear whose side they’re on.

    But, let’s not forget, this is about no more or less than a person who goes out to work getting a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work. It’s putting an end to exploitative zero hours contracts so workers get one that reflects what they regularly work. It’s about giving workers protections to stop harassment, and ending fire and rehire – proving once and for all that only Labour, not Farage, not Polanski, is on the side of working people.

    But conference, there is one area which both workers and businesses raise with me repeatedly, and that is bogus self-employment.

    Loopholes in our employment laws being used to define workers as self-employed when they are clearly not, denying them basic employment rights, undercutting businesses who are doing the right thing, and leaving people with the sense that playing by the rules doesn’t pay.

    Everyone can see this isn’t right. It is a fundamental question of fairness. And conference, I am proud to announce to you today this Labour Government will put an end to it.

    We will close the loopholes, we will stop the most egregious examples of bogus self-employment, and we will level the playing field for business. And in doing so, up to 100,000 more workers will get access to the national minimum wage and holiday pay.

    So conference, it is good to be back. We’ve shown the difference we can make. But there’s so much more that we can deliver together.

    Because only Labour is proudly pro-worker, proudly pro-business and unapologetically pro-Britain.  

    Thank you so much conference, it is great to be back with you. 

  • John Healey – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    John Healey – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by John Healey, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in Liverpool on 28 September 2026.

    Now Conference, I have to be honest. 

    I’m no first-time delegate.

    My first Labour conference was in 1986, 40 years ago, in Blackpool.

    Back then, I had hair.

    Back then, Neil Kinnock was leader – he was calling for sanctions on apartheid South Africa. 

    John Smith was calling for an industrial strategy to deal with the Tory slump. 

    John Prescott was just arguing. 

    But it was a vibrant time, it was a vibrant time, and I still get that very special energy that comes when the Labour movement gets together at conference. 

    So Conference, it is the privilege of my life to stand before you today as Labour’s Chancellor of the Exchequer.

    And to have this man as our Leader.

    Our Prime Minister – and as he likes to remind us – the first ever Co-operative Prime Minister of this country.

    Andy, you have the vision, you have the determination, and you have the plan to get things done.


    To give people hope again. 

    And frankly anyone who can do the Great North Run in under two hours just deserves respect!

    I do have to say though, you’re still wrong about the best pub snack.

    And I know Manchester is a great city, just like Liverpool is a great city. 

    But give me Rotherham any day of the week.

    Conference, before I go any further, I want to pay tribute to our former Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

    She brought to this country financial discipline, she delivered two Labour budgets that mean we’re cutting NHS waiting lists and we’re lifting half a million children out of poverty.

    And after 800 years, she will always be recognised as this country’s first-ever female Chancellor. 

    And to Keir Starmer. 

    He took on this party as our leader. 

    He took us from one of our worst-ever defeats to one of our biggest-ever victories. 

    And then as Prime Minister, he rebuilt Britain’s respect and international reputation, especially standing up to Russia in defence of Ukraine. 

    On behalf of us all, we thank you, Keir.

    And you know, as politicians, we can only be as good as the people who work with us, and work behind us.

    So I can’t tell you how fortunate I count myself to have this talented team of Treasury ministers:

    Emma and Lucy, Torsten, James, Dan and David.

    And a small dedicated team who work with me in the constituency office.

    To you all, I say a huge thank you.

    And finally, there’s someone else I want to thank.

    When I say Labour is my family, I mean it literally. 

    My guide, my inspiration, my blessing, my wife Jackie.

    Jackie is a third-generation Labour activist. 

    You know, her Grandma Jones kept Labour Party meetings running throughout the Second World War in Stoke-on-Trent, even during the bombing raids.

    And Jackie worked in Labour HQ. I worked for the MSF union. 

    We met at a union conference and within two weeks we were engaged. 

    And she’s been by my side ever since. 

    Jackie, thank you. 

    Conference, today, I want to talk about the politics of hope. 

    Our belief in a better day.

    Our conviction that committed citizens can change the world.

    No matter how hard the task, how daunting the odds.

    This is our Labour politics. 

    The hope that is earned. 

    Earned through fiscal discipline, through good work and through strong industries.

    So, I want to tell you how we’ll bring back hope.

    How we’ll get Britain growing. 

    With hope for our young people.

    With good work, good jobs and a new age of industrialisation. 

    Because Conference, I believe in Britain and we believe in Britain. 

    Conference, I’m a proud optimist. 

    I’m also a proud Yorkshireman, representing a former coalfield community. 

    Like many in our area, I have a miner’s lamp on my shelf at home.

    Those miners didn’t just use their lamps to light their own steps, they shone them to help others. 

    A symbol of solidarity. A symbol of hope. 

    That no matter the darkness, there’s always light at the end of the tunnel.

    And you know, the same goes now for Britain’s future.

    Why?

    Because this country has such resilience, such strengths, still such greatness.

    We’re home to nearly half the most innovative companies in Europe. 

    We’re world-leaders in life sciences, in defence tech, in AI.

    Our financial services, led by London, are some of the best in the world. 

    Our theatre, our TV shows, our fashion, our music is treasured the world over.

    And we have the best people. 

    The veterans in the Royal British Legion at Remembrance. 

    The winners of the Daily Mirror’s Pride of Britain awards.

    The lifeboat volunteers of the RNLI risking their own lives to save others in danger on the sea.

    This is the quiet patriotism that makes Britain great. 

    So, despite everything that we face, there are many reasons for optimism.

    New leadership. New confidence. And new hope.

    Conference, much as I believe in Britain, I also believe in Labour. 

    In what we can achieve by the strength of common endeavour. 

    I was part of the Labour government in 1997 that rebuilt Britain after 18 years of Tory failure.

    Leaving the country fairer.

    Giving the next generation a better start in life.

    From the day they’re born in the NHS to the schools they go to, to the first job they get.

    And Labour in power – at our best – has always been about building institutions that we pass on to the next generation. 

    The NHS. NATO. The Open University. The national minimum wage. The Good Friday Agreement. 

    And Conference, in just the last two years, look at what we’ve achieved as a Labour government.

    Railways coming back into public hands.

    New rights for renters. New rights at work. British Steel saved.

    And look at how we acted in Andy’s first week as Prime Minister.

    We acted on the cost of living pressures.

    We cut VAT from electricity bills.

    We capped bus fares at £2.

    We reduced business rates on pubs, clubs, and music venues.

    To give people just a bit of breathing space.

    A bit of breathing space today and hope for tomorrow.

    Conference, if we don’t talk up Labour’s actions, no one else will.

    So here’s my first challenge to you as your Labour Chancellor: be confident in who we are. 

    Be confident in our past. Be confident in our future.

    Let’s tell the story of how Labour can deliver change.

    How we can change lives, and how we can change this country. 

    Let’s tell people what we’ve done, what we’re doing, and what we will go on together to do.

    Labour – creating hope again!

    Now I first worked in the Treasury under Gordon Brown, in the late nineties and noughties. 

    It was New Labour, New Promise then

    And Gordon was and is an inspiration. 

    His determination.

    His drive.

    His block cap emails in the middle of the night. 

    And I joined him in 1999 and one of my first duties was to join him at Labour Party Conference in Bournemouth that year.

    He had been at the IMF, he flew in overnight and arrived just before he was due to give his conference speech.

    So I was in this small room with this big group of Gordon’s top aides.

    I was the new boy, they were big names then.

    Ed Miliband was there, Douglas Alexander was there, Ed Balls was there.

    Suddenly, Gordon was just about to go on and I said:

    Gordon needs a red tie!


    And the only person in the room wearing a red tie was me.

    So in 1999 in Bournemouth, Gordon made his speech as Chancellor with my tie.

    I did get it back, he signed it and I’ve never worn it since. 

    Until today. 

    Now I know the nineties is having a bit of a revival, 

    To Andy’s excitement, Oasis are going back on tour. 

    To Angela’s joy, Gladiators is back on Saturday night TV.

    But I have to level with you, Conference. 

    The money New Labour had in the nineties is simply not there now. 

    Economic growth under Gordon was more than double the Tory years that followed. 

    And Britain has it harder now. 

    We had 14 years of flatlining Tory growth and living standards – when Cameron’s austerity gutted our public services.

    When Johnson’s Brexit hammered our exports.

    And Truss’s mini Budget crashed the economy and collapsed confidence in Britain’s fiscal strength.

    They lost control of Britain’s finances.

    They left a legacy of sky-high debt costs – for families and for government. 

    And yet Kemi Badenoch – her new Shadow Chancellor is the very minister who helped Truss write that mini Budget!

    And even now, he still claims there were “lots of good things” in it!

    So, I say to them:

    Your reckless actions are still causing pain for people today.

    You left crumbling public services. 

    And you left Britain spending more on debt than the Home Office, Defence and Justice put together. 

    And people won’t forget, people won’t forgive.

    The cost of the nation’s debt is not just a number in a Chancellor’s Budget. 

    It’s the money that we can’t spend on the NHS, on schools, on housing, on social care. 

    On policing our streets, on controlling our borders, on defending our country.

    And I tell you these levels of debt are an assault on our common sense, they are an affront to our values. 

    And that’s why the Prime Minister and I are in lockstep that we will meet the fiscal rules. 

    That we will maintain control of Britain’s finances.

    And it’s not just the debt the Tories have left us. 

    Over the decades – as Andy has argued – this country has seen:

    Political power centralised.

    Economic control privatised.

    Britain deindustrialised.

    And the result? 

    Too many people today feel that Britain hasn’t been working for them, for their family, and for their area.

    And we also know how worried people are about the cost of living. The insecurity of work. The cost of business. 

    And they’re worried about the world, and they’re right. 


    Because the worldwide economic shocks, conflicts, trade tensions are felt hard here at home.

    From the prices at the pump to the cost of the monthly mortgage payments.

    But Conference, you know what?

    These times demand of us a greater resolve, a greater determination, and a greater hope.

    To build a more resilient country.

    And remember, Conference, we are Labour. 

    It was Labour that stepped up to clear the slums and build the council houses during the Great Depression.

    It was Labour that stepped up to build NATO and the NHS after the war.

    It was Labour that stepped up to lead the world through the global financial crisis. 

    When times are tough, we step up.

    And now, Conference, we are stepping up again.

    With a Plan for Britain.

    With our international leadership.

    And with our Labour values. 

    That is the Labour I know. 

    That is the Labour I love.

    So let me tell you how we’ll do it. 

    How we’ll bring fresh hope to Britain. 

    Built on the rock of fiscal discipline.

    Built on a growing economy, with good work and jobs in more places.

    Built on a new age of industrialisation. 

    On day one as Chancellor, I said my first duty is fiscal discipline. 

    And I’ll tell you why.

    It underwrites every promise this Government makes. 

    On growth, on jobs, on national security, and on public services. 

    We can’t succeed without it. 

    That’s why the Prime Minister and I are united in meeting the fiscal rules.

    Balancing the books, with a buffer against uncertainty.

    Controlling borrowing to bring down inflation.

    And reducing long term pressures on our finances.

    Conference, that commitment is so important. 

    There’s nothing progressive about losing control.

    Because it’s working people who pay for it. 

    And Conference, just look at who offers the opposite.

    It’s not just the Shadow Chancellor. 

    But Reform UK.  

    Dodgy donors, fantasy funding behind every plan. 

    And Nigel Farage, he wants you to think he’s a man of the people.

    But when it comes to the economy, he’s Liz Truss with a Bitcoin account.

    That’s not my politics. That’s not our politics. 

    And so, through the core of the Budget I deliver a month today will be fiscal discipline.

    To give families and businesses a bit of breathing space.

    To drive good growth and jobs in more places. 

    And to write a new chapter of hope for Britain’s future. 

    Conference, that miners lamp on my shelf at home in Rotherham came from Cortonwood Colliery – the pit where the miners’ strike started.

    Where Thatcher’s crusade against coalfield communities started.

    And our last pit – in Silverwood – was closed by the Tories in 1994. 

    The jobs went away.

    Hope and opportunity went too. 

    One in three men were unemployed.

    So when I was first elected, I had as my first top three priorities jobs, jobs,  and jobs.

    And now, as then, I still have that burning determination.

    Good work. Good jobs. Britain working again.

    This Party, our party, was founded by workers, for working people.

    The rhythms of work, the value of work, the pride that good work brings.

    That’s been Labour’s watchword for more than 100 years. 

    In the 30s, it drove the Jarrow Crusade to London. 

    In the 40s, it drove the Attlee Government to build full employment.

    And in the 90s, it drove Gordon and Tony to launch the New Deal for Young People.

    Getting them off benefits and into work for the first time.

    Their futures transformed. And making their contribution to the future of the country.

    Now, Conference, we all remember our first job. Mine was in a pub called the Milburn Arms in North Yorkshire. I washed pots and glasses.

    I worked for John and Betty Young. 

    They worked me hard, but fair. 

    And that job taught me the basics – about turning up on time, about getting on with others, about respecting those with more experience.

    It also taught me the glory of a hand-pulled pint.

    But every person, every young person should know the pride of getting their first job, and taking home their first pay check. 

    And while I learnt about work in the Milburn Arms, it’s Alan Milburn’s work now, for government, that lays bare the scale of the challenge young people face once again today.

    After Covid, and before the election, the Tories let the number of young people in this country not in employment, in education, or training rise to nearly one million.

    Two thirds have never worked.

    Potential wasted. Ambition frustrated. Opportunity closed. 

    Signed off, written off.

    And I know it’s tough for young people today. 

    Some find it hard to face the world. 

    And I hear the fear in their mum’s and dad’s voices when they talk about their kids’ futures, when they talk about the dark forces on the internet.

    And our social security system must always be there for those who can never work.

    But for everyone else, benefits should be a bridge to work, to wider participation, to a better life, not a trap that people can’t escape. 

    And Conference, it is simply not progressive to allow a bigger and bigger benefits bill and a system which offers an income but doesn’t offer a future. 

    So once again, as a Labour Government it falls to us to act. 

    And this is more than an economic must.

    This is a moral duty. 

    And Conference, I refuse to write off a million young people like the Tories have done. 

    When some people see a million youngsters with no work and no training, they see despair. 

    I see hope. 

    I see the future workforce of a reindustrialised Britain. Future business founders. Future union stewards. Future homeowners.

    I see a generation born this century, digital natives, whip smart, questioning, ambitious, brave. 

    I see the best asset we have in Britain: in our young people. 

    And I believe this generation has the potential to be a great generation.

    I believe we can help this generation move from Generation Jeopardy to Generation Hope. 

    Let me tell you about an apprentice pipe fitter called Ste. 

    I met him on Saturday when I went with Andy Burnham and Mayor Steve Rotheram on the first newly built ferry across the Mersey in 60 years.

    Ste helped build it, built here on the Mersey at Birkenhead. 

    And I asked him what advice he would give to a younger brother or sister about apprenticeships. 

    And he said: “Just go for it.”

    “Just go for it” he said, “because you’re earning and learning at the same time. And you can take these skills anywhere in the world.”

    Well Conference I’m happy to say that Ste is here today with some of those other apprentices, 150 at the Cammell Laird yard, that helped build that ferry.

    Lads, it’s great to see you today. Thanks for joining us, and thanks for what you’re doing for this great city.

    So today I want to announce a downpayment on Alan Milburn’s work.

    A Local Apprenticeships Service, expanded to more places, led by Mayors, targeted at these young people.

    Delivering thousands more apprenticeships for those young people.

    With local teams, a bit like football scouts for apprenticeships.

    Local teams who will go to local firms that’ve never taken on a trainee, and say: we’ll help you do it.

    That will go to the youngsters who’ve been out of work and say: we’ve got a place for you.

    Led by mayors, because it’s the mayor that knows their areas best. 

    They know which firms are hiring, they know which colleges are delivering, and they know which estates have been left behind.

    That’s what devolution means.

    And we had planned to start in a few areas. Now every mayor will have the chance to do it.

    Backed by an extra £100 million, fully funded by savings from the DWP.

    Because Conference the best thing we can offer a young person isn’t a benefit payment.

    It’s a first job. With training. And a wage.

    Our determination to help matched by their determination to hope.

    Conference, my politics have been shaped by the industrial heartlands of South Yorkshire. 

    The most brutal day of that bitter Miners’ strike was at Orgreave.

    Today, on the site of the Orgreave pit, is Rotherham’s Advanced Manufacturing Park. 

    One of the most concentrated areas of innovation anywhere in Britain.

    It’s where South Yorkshire’s young people are working with high-tech systems, making things that their grandparents could never have dreamed of.

    And one of those young people is Sean.

    Sean’s dad was a local miner – but there were no pit jobs for Sean.

    So he joined the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre, he joined as an apprentice.

    So while his Dad mined the coal that kept Britain’s lights on, above the same coal seam Sean is now working on high tech research for the future of nuclear power. 

    Our coal mines are not coming back. But this is how Britain’s industrial past is being remade now for the modern world. 

    It’s how people are starting to tell each other stories of the future, and not the past.

    And this, Conference, is a story we can tell across the country. 

    In Scotland, where Dundee’s old tyre factory closed, a new innovation park stands in its place. 

    On Deeside in Wales, where generations of Shotton steelworkers were laid off, Airbus is now recruiting hundreds of workers to build the wings that fly the world.

    And in Derby, where they made the Spitfire engines, Rolls-Royce now build nuclear reactors and put the UK at the front of clean energy globally.

    And today, I can announce that Rolls-Royce will invest an extra £300 million more into its British factories.

    In Derby, in Bristol, in Glasgow, and in Rotherham.

    Conference, this is the new age of industrialisation. This is the new confidence in Britain.

    Lit by this government. Driven forward by business.

    So don’t tell me, don’t tell me it’s not possible to create a new age of British industry.

    Don’t tell me it’s not possible to have good growth in every postcode.

    And don’t tell me that people can’t hope again.

    Conference, we will use everything we can to create good jobs and industrialise Britain. 

    We’ll use the National Wealth Fund – creating and supporting a further 130,000 jobs across the UK by 2030. 

    Pulling in the private investment to create jobs in AI, in tech, in defence, and in clean energy. 

    And we’ll use the power of public procurement to direct more of British taxpayers’ money to British business, British jobs, and British innovation. 

    We’ll work in partnership with business and unions. 

    We’ll work with patriotism.

    Proud to back British firms, promote British exports and get British people working people in the jobs we create. 

    I know how national industrial strength is national security. 

    It means no dictator, no adversary can ever push us around.

    And so I want to confirm today that this British government will commit to £6 billion of contracts for our British shipyards.

    They’ll build the new docks for the new submarines that will defend us all for decades to come. 

    Built in Britain, by British workers because of decisions taken of this Labour Government.

    And Conference, credit where credit is due – to the GMB for helping us get this over the line.

    Because I’m proud to say that the British trade unions are full partners in this new age of industrialisation. 

    Proud it was a Labour government that put unions as full members on our Industrial Council.

    And yes, unions on the board of the Bank of England. 

    Because Britain’s economic success is built on the success of working people. 

    So to every union delegate in this hall, especially to those of you who serve as union reps and stewards.

    Today, I’m also announcing the rebirth of the Union Learning Fund.

    Set up by Labour. Abolished by the Tories. Now re-established by this Labour Government. 

    I talked before about the quiet patriotism that makes this country great. 

    These volunteers who step forwards to help their colleagues in the workplace, they do so as volunteers, sometimes at a cost to themselves, but always with the strength of the trade union behind them. 

    They too are the very best of us all.

    So I’m proud to bring back this Union Learning Fund.

    I’m proud of the fact that last time, 180,000 workers every year got new training opportunities through that fund. 

    And we’ll do that again.

    Better skills, better prospects, for British workers because of decisions taken by this Labour Government.

    And Conference, I want this new Learning Fund to come with a new focus. 

    To help British workers harness Artificial Intelligence, not be outrun by it. 

    AI is the greatest innovation of our time.

    It’s a general-purpose technology that will simply transform our society at every level.

    Every business, every community, every hospital, every school, everywhere can benefit from adopting it.

    It’s at the centre of a groundswell of new, world-leading British tech companies.

    And it’s the driving force with which this new age of industrialisation can be built. 

    Yes we need to face the serious risks to national security, to personal data, and our children’s wellbeing. 

    And it will change our labour market in fundamental ways.

    But I give you this commitment: 

    We won’t let AI leave Britain’s workers behind.

    And we will make sure that Britain wins in this AI revolution.

    Conference, as we draw inspiration from our values, we also draw strength from our past.

    And it was 70 years ago, at a Labour conference, Tony Crosland published his book on the future of our Party.

    He wrote it then believing that economic growth will take care of itself and that Labour’s job was simply to share out the proceeds.

    20 years later, he realised he’d been wrong. 

    That growth doesn’t just happen. We have to work for it. We have to create the conditions for it.

    And without growth, there is no social democracy.

    You can’t fund the ends without the means.

    That’s the lesson for our generation.

    Labour isn’t here just to cut the cake in a different way. We have to bake a bigger cake, and make sure that it’s fairly shared.

    So whether it’s the cost of business or the cost of living, the only long-term answer is growth.

    Good growth in every postcode.

    A dual mission from the Treasury and No10 North. 

    London, the powerhouse of Britain’s economy for so long – should not shoulder the economic burden alone. 

    We need growth generated in more places. 

    We need wealth created in more places. 

    And I want our government decisions and our policies to bring new levels of confidence, investment and yes, profits in British business.

    Because it’s businesses that will create this country’s jobs, and wealth, and growth.

    And I say, growth isn’t just a graph or a spreadsheet.

    It’s a family at the kitchen table saying: yes, it looks like we can afford that holiday this summer.

    It’s the sole trader saying: yes, for the first time I think I can take on that apprentice.

    And it’s the community looking at its high street or its town centre and saying: there are new shops, there are new businesses, the pubs haven’t closed. We’re turning a corner.

    And this is what I dedicate myself to as Britain’s Chancellor. 

    The growth that drives progress: better wages, better lives.

    That is the Labour way. 

    So Conference, let’s bring back hope to Britain.

    For the next generation of young people.

    For a new age of industrialisation.

    For growth made here, by British firms and British workers.

    So, when you leave this hall, when you leave this conference, remember that miner’s lamp.

    Those Cortonwood workers didn’t carry it for themselves.

    They carried it for those beside them. They carried it for their community. 

    They carried it for the ones who came after.

    That is our job now.

    To light the way for a generation that’s been told there is no way through.

    Good work. Fresh hope. A new age of industry. 

    And the solidarity that has always carried this country forward.

    A country that can hope again. 

    A country that will hope again. 

    Earned by Labour. Delivered for Britain. 

    Thank you.

  • Ed Miliband – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Ed Miliband – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Ed Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, in Liverpool on 28 September 2026.

    Thank you friends and can I thank you for your support.

    And let me start by echoing Wes’ words earlier. Events at RAF Fairford yesterday are a reminder of the threats our country faces.

    I want to thank our security services, Armed Forces and police for the work they did yesterday and they do all year round to help keep our country safe.

    Friends, we will always stand up for our security against those who would do us harm.

    And friends, I am so proud to be your Labour Foreign Secretary, and to support Andy Burnham, our Prime Minister, who has put Labour values back at the heart of our Labour Government.

    I want to start today by telling you about the spirit that animates my work as Foreign Secretary, driven by two refugees a world away from us here today.

    The first of them walked 100km from Brussels to Ostend with his father, leaving behind his mother and his sister, to take one of the last boats to Britain to flee the Nazi invasion.

    He learned English, he joined the Royal Navy and fought fascism. You know, he would tell stories of being at sea watching the lights of the D-Day landings and he would say it softly, but I know he always felt an incredible sense of pride that he had played his part in defeating the Nazis.

    The other refugee spent her childhood in hiding in Poland. She faced experiences that no child should face – the loss of her father in a concentration camp, as well as separation from her mother and her sister.

    She only survived because, unlike 60 family members, she was saved by the heroism of the bravest people. Ordinary people who did extraordinary things.

    Then she got to Britain after the war as a teenager, learned English and built a life.

    Friends, I am sure you have guessed this, those two refugees were my father and mother. My dad and my mum. And I want to start today by saying their history, my family history, means it is the honour of my life to be your Labour Foreign Secretary.

    My parents found sanctuary in Britain, but they also found something else. As fascism engulfed Europe, they found in Britain a country that was a beacon of light against the darkness.

    A country that stood for fundamental values – freedom, democracy, the rule of law. A country that was rebuilt after the war by the 1945 Labour Government, and with other nations, that government built the world anew.

    Think what that generation achieved. That Labour Government led the way in holding the Nazis responsible for their crimes. That Labour Government helped create NATO. That Labour Government ratified the convention on human rights. And that Labour Government led the way in establishing the United Nations – an international system built by our values, Labour values, British values.

    Friends, we should be all proud of that legacy.

    And I come to this conference today to tell you it is time to roll up our sleeves all over again. Because once again the world order needs rebuilding anew.

    We need to be honest about the world we confront. War has returned to Europe. Democratic norms are under threat as they haven’t been for generations. The international rule of law is being brazenly flouted. New threats have emerged from the climate crisis to AI.

    There is only one response to these challenges – to fight for our values. The values my parents saw in Britain. Values which today are more important than ever.

    Fighting for those values of democracy, the rule of the law, protection for rights and freedoms, is essential to tackle injustice and suffering.

    But hear me well when I say this, it is also the only way to fight for our interests as the only real route to stability in the world and therefore peace and prosperity.

    You see, what we understand is we fight for our values and our interests as a country together. So just like in 1945, now it falls to this generation, this Labour Government, to play our part defending and advancing Labour values, Britain’s values, the values this party has always fought for.

    And friends, this must begin by confronting the fact that war has returned to Europe with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. A war which has already seen more than 100,000 Ukrainian civilians and soldiers killed, as well as hundreds of thousands of Russians.

    A war on our doorstep. The worst conflict in Europe since World War Two.

    And here’s the thing, this is not just a war which is killing innocents. It is a war of terror.

    The Kremlin says it wants to “freeze” the Ukrainians into defeat. Last winter temperatures in Kyiv reached minus 25 degrees and power was interrupted almost every day. Drone warfare leaves people afraid to go out onto the streets.

    Friends, this war matters to all of us. If our values mean anything, they mean standing firm against this invasion.

    The future security of all of Europe is on the line in this fight. If Putin wins, we would have allowed war and force to beat sovereignty and self-determination on our continent.

    Now, I am proud that since 2022, under successive governments, Britain has stepped up. Stepped up our military aid, stepped up our humanitarian support, and the British people have stepped up too, taking in Ukrainian refugees.

    Friends, I say today we will never, never give in to Russia’s threats that we must stand aside and abandon the people of Ukraine. And we will always, always stand up to Russia’s threats wherever they are.

    Today I salute the courage of the people of Ukraine. We send our solidarity to President Zelenskyy and his government. And we say with one voice we will stand with the people of Ukraine until they prevail.

    We are part of this fight as humanitarians, but also as proud Europeans. This is our continent. And if there is one lesson that I have seen demonstrated to me again and again in this job, it is this – Europe is not just our geography but so much more.

    It is how we pursue our values, from climate to the Middle East. It is how we pursue our interests, from trade to defence. It’s where we build and protect our alliances, so it is not simply Britain acting alone but Britain with others.

    And on economics, on defence, on security, I say to this conference, our future lies in a stronger, deeper partnership with the European Union.

    Of course, our alliance with the United States in trade, defence and security remains essential, including as part of NATO. But Europe also needs to do more to defend itself.

    That is why investment in our defence is an absolutely core part of this government’s foreign policy. And as we speak, British forces are deployed across the globe, from Cyprus to the Falklands, Estonia to Somalia.

    Let me take this opportunity to pay tribute to the men and women of our Armed Forces, serving in operations across the world to maintain our security, keep the peace, and uphold our values. Friends, let us all applaud them today.

    And we must be prepared to confront all the security threats that Europe and the world faces.

    We will stand up to prevent a nuclear Iran through economic sanctions. We will act against the proxies of Iran. And we will continue to isolate Iran so that they reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which is so essential to tackling the cost of living crisis here at home.

    We also face new threats in today’s world. This summer’s heatwaves and wildfires in Europe are just the latest wake up call about the climate crisis.

    Friends, we know the longer we wait the greater the costs. We know the effects will spread across borders. And we know that future generations will hold us in infamy if we leave them with climate disaster unaddressed.

    So let us therefore ask each and every party, where do you stand on tackling the climate crisis? Where do you stand on defending our way of life?

    And I say to those parties that deny, delay, and dissemble on the climate threat, your position would leave our country unsafe and threaten our national security.

    And I pledge to you, we will lead the efforts across the world to put climate at the heart of national security.

    And friends, we will also confront the urgent risks we face from AI. The technological progress offered by AI as we see in our daily lives is inspiring. But the threat it poses, according to its own inventors, is daunting.

    Now some are calling for us to act, but other tech companies are saying we should leave it all to them.

    But friends, the lesson of history is that we cannot leave it to corporations to put in place the guardrails to serve the public interest. It is neither their purpose nor their motive. Theirs is to maximise profits. Friends, we cannot and will not allow that to come at the expense of our children or indeed humanity.

    That is why as part of our G20 presidency next year, this country will lead the efforts to manage AI so we keep our country and our world safe, and I say no tech titan should stand in our way.

    And as we think about our role in the world, we will never be silent about injustice and suffering.

    Let us state the reality about the Middle East. The only route to peace is two states, a secure Israel and a secure Palestine, with freedom, dignity and self-determination for both peoples.

    We all know how far away we are from that.

    Hamas’ murderous attack on October 7th united the vast majority of the world in rightful condemnation.

    We stand, I say, against antisemitism wherever we find it and in whatever form. And this party will always recognise the threats Israel faces and stand emphatically against those who seek its destruction.

    But this cannot justify the suffering the Netanyahu government has inflicted in Gaza and the West Bank. This suffering is a stain on the conscience of the world.

    And I want to say to the millions of people in this country, and indeed elsewhere who have been moved and outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people, we hear you. You were right. And under Andy’s leadership, we have reset our approach.

    We call out ethnic cleansing by the settler terrorists in the West Bank. We call out the evidence of war crimes In Gaza. We call out Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. And we match words with actions.

    We will ban the import of goods from illegal settlements. We will disrupt the supply lines of British finance, British construction and British services for illegal settlements.

    And when it comes to the attempt to destroy the two-state solution, this party, this movement, this government, says we will not let you succeed.

    And friends, our argument is not with the people of Israel, but with the actions of its government.

    My grandmother was given shelter and sanctuary after the Second World War by Israel.

    And the bonds of solidarity between the British people and those who yearn for peace in Israel and Palestine are too strong to be broken. And our decision to act mobilised the international community, country after country.

    And you see, there is a lesson here. This is how we make change happen in today’s world. Doing what is right and galvanising others to act too.

    And there is also a wider lesson for our party from Israel and Palestine about how we have changed our approach. As a government we can, must and we will succeed because of, not in spite of, our progressive values.

    We are proud to be Labour. Proud to believe in changing the world for the better. Proud to believe in international solidarity.

    We stand up for what is right. We act on what we believe. We are not here to accept the status quo, but to change it.

    And that confidence, that belief in boldness, is the change that Andy has brought to our party and our government and it is why I am so proud of his leadership.

    And we will apply our principles to other conflicts in the world, including the worst humanitarian crisis there is – the conflict in Sudan. Millions displaced, tens of thousands killed, malnutrition rampant.

    Friends, we will use every diplomatic and political tool to address the suffering of its people. And we will use our leadership to reform the international financial system so it properly serves the developing world.

    So many countries you know, and I meet this when I meet foreign ministers, so many countries face the triple challenges of climate breakdown, debt burden – unsustainable debt burden – and poverty.

    In two weeks time, I will attend the annual meetings of the World Bank, where I will use Britain’s seat on the board to drive change.

    And friends, I promise this. We will use our G20 presidency next year to meet our responsibilities and mobilise the world, building on the great achievements on debt and development of the last Labour Government.

    Friends, from security and defence to Israel and Palestine, to Europe, to climate, to AI, this is our foreign policy. Stronger in our values, bolder in our action, building alliances across the world.

    Now friends, I began by talking about my parents. And after my Mum died at the end of May of this year, I received a letter from a friend. It said she had a special quality that he recognised from his own family. Resilient idealism.

    Resilient idealism. I love that phrase. Resilient because, let’s be honest, it is hard to change the world. You get knocked down – don’t I know it – you get knocked down and you have to pick yourself up.

    Idealism because for all the world’s complexities and compromises, Labour exists to stand up for what is right.

    Labour is here to defend the principles that my parents admired about our country and that means so much to me now.

    You see my parents didn’t just observe a country fighting for values, they taught me that I have a responsibility to fight for them too.

    There is this phrase that people use about Holocaust survivors – survivor’s guilt. I think my parents had something else. Survivor’s responsibility.

    Survivor’s Responsibility to pass on the message to the generations that come next that we are here to leave the world a better place than we found it. To never walk by on the other side. To never be bystanders to oppression and injustice.

    Those are the reasons I joined this party and so many of you did too.

    You know, they say that as you age, you become more cynical. Why? Not me. Not you. Not us.

    I believe in our ability to change our country and the world for the better now more than ever.

    And I promise you, I promise you that every day as Foreign Secretary, every day as your Labour Foreign Secretary, I will fight for your values. Labour values. Britain’s values.

    Thank you so much.

  • Lucy Powell – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Lucy Powell – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Lucy Powell, the Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, in Liverpool on 27 September 2026.

    Thank you, Conference, it’s great to be here at my first conference as your Deputy Leader of the Labour Party.

    I mean what a year it has been. A lot has happened since I last stood here for the hustings last year.

    But some things, conference, never change. I’m still raving after my DJ set at the LGBT disco last night. People are still trying to get hold of Oasis tickets, me included. And Andy Burnham’s still on the front cover of the New Statesman.

    But the biggest constant of all? You, our brilliant members, who embody the mission of this movement and support us every day.

    That same spirit of service runs through our General Secretary too. Thank you to Hollie Ridley for your leadership. You’ve served this party and movement relentlessly for 14 years and made a huge contribution to our general election victory. We’re forever grateful. Thank you, Hollie.

    And to Joe Fortune – our new General Secretary – I can’t wait to get stuck in working with you working as we build towards the next election. Joe – like me, you have big shoes to fill – shoes worn by strong, working-class, pioneering women of our movement. And in Angela’s case, make that many pairs.

    And conference, can we take a moment to thank Angela Rayner for being a brilliant Deputy Leader for more than five years – from opposition into government. She continues to inspire us.

    Conference, when I asked for your support last year, I promised I would be your voice at the top of our party. I said I would help us get the politics right, to show our values more strongly, and to give people a reason to believe and trust in Labour.

    I’ve taken my ‘Lucy Listens’ right across the country, which has helped to shape what we’re doing in government. It’s been a time of big change, but we’ve come out stronger and more united. Our mission remains; hope and optimism.

    Because we believe that life can be better, that things need – and can – change. That’s what progressive politics has always been about. It’s why we are the party of hope.

    Out of the ruins of the Second World War, we didn’t accept that devastation meant we couldn’t be radical. Instead, our labour forefathers created our beloved NHS and the welfare state.

    In the 1960s, we didn’t accept that the white heat of technology was a threat, we saw it as an opportunity to give rise to huge social mobility and progress.

    And in the face of the Tory recession of the 1990s, we didn’t accept those who said that unemployment and low pay were a price worth paying, we introduced the national minimum wage, statutory maternity pay and the New Deal for young people.

    That’s what the Labour Party does.

    And today, in the face of difficult economic and global political headwinds, we’re determined to fix the big challenges politics has ducked for too long. We look forward, with optimism and hope. Our heads held high, our shoulders back. Our values guiding us every step of the way.

    That’s what you, our members and activists – the life and soul of our movement – have been helping us to deliver.

    And you should take huge pride in what you have helped this Labour government to deliver.

    Free school meals for over 3 million children.

    Day one rights to sick pay for workers.

    Rail back into public control. And local buses too – one for Andy.

    We’ve ended exploitative zero hours contracts.

    We’ve lifted the two-child benefit cap, lifting half a million children out of poverty.

    Brought in the biggest social housing programme in a generation.

    Recognised the state of Palestine.

    Shown global leadership in Ukraine, and the Middle East and beyond.

    We’ve reset relations with Europe.

    We’ve reduced waiting times and recruited more teachers.

    Set up Great British energy and raced towards clean power.

    We’ve ended no fault evictions.

    Boosted pay for the lowest paid and cut VAT from energy bills.

    And – yes – conference, we’ve finally ended hereditary peers sitting in the House of Lords.

    These are good Labour things we should shout about.

    But, conference, doing all this and more, isn’t enough on its own. It clearly hasn’t been. The elections this year told us a different story. We lost hundreds of great Labour representatives across the UK. There’s no sugar-coating it. We let you down and you deserved better. And I’m sorry.

    Because we also have to make the argument and win it. We are in a big battle of ideas, a battle of values, a battle for attention. It’s no good anymore just diligently getting on with the job. We have to show purpose, underpinned by values.

    And that’s what Andy Burnham’s leadership is giving us – showing us the why, not just the what. Making and winning the big arguments. Leadership, purpose and values.

    Let’s seize this opportunity we have with this second hearing, to really punch home that Labour story. I’m really excited about what’s in store, I hope you are too?

    Because conference, we all know that the extremes of British politics are seeking to tear our communities apart, to pit neighbour against neighbour, thriving on fear and division, but won’t let them win.

    Nigel Farage wants us to all blame immigrants for our country’s ills. He wants a race to the bottom on workers’ rights and deregulation. Especially for his Billionaire crypto mates. He believes in trickle-down economics, that never actually trickles down.

    Conference, he’s just a modern-day love child of Enoch Powell and Margaret Thatcher. And quite bizarrely, for someone who seems to hate foreigners so much, he really does love their money, doesn’t he?

    And as for the Tories … well, they seem somewhere between an identity crisis and collective amnesia.

    But we won’t forget – the British people won’t forget – the damage they did in 14 years of government. They left this country worse off, our public services hollowed out, and now they’ve got the nerve to lecture us on the crises they created. They left the prisons completely full. They tanked the economy. They left 5 million people on the NHS waiting lists. Forgive me I’m not going to be taking any lessons from them.

    Our opponents are locked in the arguments of the past, while we look to the future. And that’s how we’ll win, and I am confident there’s a majority in this country who agree.

    Conference, I’m also here today as your Education Secretary, your Labour Education Secretary. And what an enormous honour that is. It’s definitely the best job in government.

    Almost my entire family are in education – many of them are here today too – so I get no shortage of advice. I’m sure I’ll get full written feedback on my speech later as well.

    Our Labour values of opportunity for all, of a better life, of progress and advancement are channelled through our collective commitment to education. It’s the passport to success, to fulfilment, to life.

    Education is hope.

    In many ways, I lead the Department of Hope.

    Conference, there’s also a big argument that we’ve got win in education too. It’s an argument about the future vs the past.

    It was exactly 30 years ago at this conference that Tony Blair declared the Labour Party’s three priorities were education, education, education.

    That declaration, that commitment, drove significant and sustained improvement. Not only through our school system but with the establishment of the great Sure Start programme. We transformed millions of lives and gave a whole new generation new hope of new possibilities.

    That’s the power of a Labour mission for education. We won the argument then and we will win it again.

    Our promise that every child matters; our belief that no young person should be left behind, our commitment that everyone should have the opportunity to fulfil their potential.

    And that in this fast-changing, technological age, we have a duty to equip young people with the knowledge, know-how and skills they need to thrive.

    Not a one-size-fits-all system that sets some up for failure by only offering a narrow view of what good is, nor one stuck in the past, unwilling and unable to adapt.

    Conference, our schools are now some of the best in the world and we should celebrate that. But we can also recognise that it’s not working for everyone.

    Too many left behind, without the passport they need to go further. The disadvantage gap remains stubbornly wide. The gap between regions is widening. A crisis in special educational needs support.

    And at the last general election, 1.5 million children were persistently absent from school.

    And today, over 1 million young people – all educated under the Tories – not in education, training or employment.

    These are the warnings.

    Literacy and numeracy will always be the core, and we’re doing internationally well in these areas. But the Head of PISA also said that too many young people think school is a waste of time and don’t feel they belong. It’s become a straitjacket for too many.

    And this is what happens when children and young people lose hope. And hope matters.

    Now look conference, you might have seen Michael Gove and his acolytes criticising us. He said I was bringing back stupid.

    Well, I’ll tell you what’s stupid, only choosing to see one-side of the story. I’ll tell what’s stupid, being stuck in the past whilst the world changes fast. And I’ll tell you what’s stupid, claiming to be evidence-led while saying you’ve had enough of the experts.

    Michael Gove wants all the plaudits for the good bits but wants to take no responsibility for the bad. I think Ofsted would say he Requires Improvement. Although of course under the new framework he’d need attention. Let’s not give him anymore of that because he loves it too much.

    We’re not bringing back stupid, conference – we’re bringing back hope.

    A Department for Hope with a prospectus for change.

    If a young person believes that education will open doors for them, they’ll turn up. They work hard. But when they don’t, they check out.

    We have to be relevant as well as outstanding. More pathways not fewer, more choice not less. Taking down barriers, not putting them up. Engaging not disconnecting. Closing the gap between the classroom and work. Always high standards but looking to the future not the past.

    That’s why I am putting technical and vocational qualifications on a par with academic ones.

    We’re introducing new vocational GCSEs alongside T Levels and V Levels and new apprenticeships post 16.

    High quality, high esteem, underpinned by national standards in subjects in demand for the future economy. I’m ending the snobbery towards technical education.

    Not a two-tier system, far from it, but technical excellence alongside academic excellence too.

    More practical assessment in practical subjects, who knew! And strong oracy and speaking skills throughout. And more work experience.

    Because in the AI age, high levels of knowledge and skills will be even more important, but there will be some jobs that AI will never be able to do either.

    We will change how schools are measured to incentivise that broader offer.

    We’ll expand access to enrichment activities – from music groups to debating societies, to engineering and sports.

    We’ll go further on the Curriculum Review to allow more time to go deeper and for richer experiences.

    We’ll tackle the SEND crisis, with early intervention and help, more investment to support children, families and schools. Reforming the system so it’s refocused on inclusion and improving outcomes for children.

    And beyond schools, we’ll build on the legacy of Sure Start, giving every child the best start in life.

    And let’s not underestimate what a gamechanger we’re delivering here – 30 hours of free childcare from nine months old and free breakfast clubs rolled out across the country.

    And on that point, can I just pay tribute to my predecessor, Bridget Phillipson, for the work she did to make that happen. Thank you, Bridget.

    And as part of our plan to put care at the heart of everything we do, we’ll tackle profiteering in children’s care and ensure loving, enduring relationships.

    Further Education was decimated by the Tories – we’ll reverse that decline. Because further education is the link between school and work.

    We’ll make sure that young people today see the value in going to university. The future requires more not less highly qualified young people.

    Conference, we will win that argument again, that education needs to confidently face the future.

    We can only be the Department for Hope though, if we take everyone with us. We have amazing teachers, school leaders and support staff doing their best, every day, to help children thrive. It’s not a job it’s a calling.

    I will always value school leaders and the school workforce. And their well-being. I understand the job you do, even in some of the most challenging contexts.

    And I want a culture built on respect, collaboration, not competition. Self-improving and self-sustaining. Communities of schools working together for their community of children.

    And conference I will establish our School Support Staff Negotiating Body to ensure all staff get the recognition and reward they deserve.

    These are the arguments we need to win.

    Conference, the world is changing fast, and childhood is changing with it. In this technological revolution, it’s the next generation that has to thrive in it – not the last one. It’s our job to help them navigate it – safely, with confidence and with relish.

    The world has never been more connected, yet children have never felt more isolated. Childhood itself needs reimaging in this new era. Play, exploring, freedom, belonging and happiness.

    So, my Department for Hope, this government of hope, will put the children’s hopes at the very heart of everything we do.

    Because that’s what a Labour government does – it doesn’t just manage decline, it gives people something to believe in again.

    The country’s crying out for it.

    And together, conference, we will bring it back.

    Thank you very much.

  • Wes Streeting – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    Wes Streeting – 2026 Speech to Labour Party Conference

    The speech made by Wes Streeting, the Secretary of State for Defence, in Liverpool on 28 September 2026.

    Thank you, Jack – that was absolutely brilliant. You keep being ambitious and as for my own, like HMS Agamemnon last week, I think that ship has sailed.

    But you Jack are a great example of the future that a stronger Britain can offer the next generation.

    Jack’s proud of where he’s from.

    Proud of where he works.

    Proud of the contribution he is making to our nation.

    So to Jack and all the young men and women who are building a stronger, wealthier, safer Britain – thank you.

    Given events, you will understand that before getting into my speech today I want to say something about yesterday’s events around RAF Fairford.

    You will understand there is a live police investigation and I can’t provide much further detail than that which is reported.

    But I do want to say that our friendship with America is the closest alliance of any two nations on Earth, and we will always stand together against those who hate our freedom and those who wish us harm.

    What we saw yesterday from our security services, our armed forces, and our police, was just a small glimpse of the extraordinary work they do every day, around the clock and around the world, behind the scenes and without recognition, to keep our country safe.

    To all of them, from all of us, thank you.

    It is great to be back in Liverpool.

    Last year, I stood on this stage and spoke about a great legacy of the Attlee government.

    Our National Health Service.

    Built on a simple principle: to provide freedom from fear – fear that illness would bring financial ruin.

    And that Labour government built another great institution too – NATO – based on the same principle: to provide freedom from fear – fear that tyranny would once again bring catastrophe to Europe.

    Bevan created the NHS. 

    Bevin founded NATO.

    Two institutions born of the same generation.

    Rooted in the same belief in security.

    One built security at home.

    The other built security with our allies abroad.

    And beneath them both lies the same conviction: solidarity. 

    The belief that an injury to one is an injury to all.

    But it is easy to believe in solidarity when it costs nothing.

    The test comes when another nation needs us.

    And I am proud that we’ve shown throughout our history that when allies call, Britain answers.

    Nowhere has this been clearer than Ukraine.

    Ukrainians did not ask for this war.

    Putin invaded their country. 

    I saw the consequences of his imperialism first hand when I visited Kyiv this summer.

    The bombed-out shopping centres.

    The make-do shelters in underground carparks.

    Children’s toys lying in the rubble of the homes that Putin destroyed. 

    Ukraine’s frontline is the frontline for freedom and democracy everywhere.

    So, when a Ukrainian trade unionist leaves their workplace, puts on a uniform and goes to defend their family from invasion, I know whose side the Labour movement should be on.

    Theirs.

    When a Ukrainian nurse treats casualties under drone attack, I know whose side we should be on.

    Hers.

    When Ukrainian children spend their nights in underground shelters because Russian missiles are overhead, I know where our solidarity belongs.

    With them.

    So, to President Zelenskyy and our friends in Ukraine:

    Yesterday, today, tomorrow, we are with you for as long as it takes.

    Slava Ukraini.

    Closer to home, those who serve in our armed forces do so knowing they may be asked to pay the ultimate price for our collective freedom.

    I’m proud of the work John Healey started for our people: the biggest pay rise in years, investment in housing for our families, and action to support our veterans. 

    For many of those men and women, their service requires them to work in the shadows, so that the rest of us can go about our lives in safety and with confidence.

    Whether in our intelligence services or our special forces, they serve quietly, neither seeking nor receiving the public recognition their courage, professionalism and quiet dedication deserve.

    Secrecy does not negate the need for scrutiny.

    And our special forces don’t ask for special treatment. 

    They themselves set the highest standards for those who wear the uniform. 

    All they ask in return is that the historic misconduct of a few is not used to smear the heroism and integrity of the many.

    Because they will always have our back.

    And as Defence Secretary I will always have theirs.

    We are living in a new age of insecurity. 

    It is not yet clear whether freedom or tyranny will define the 21st century.

    War has returned to Europe. 

    Old alliances are being tested.

    Warfare is as tough, as bloody, and as deadly as it has ever been.

    But it is also being transformed by drones, by data, and by digital networks, in a way which would have been unrecognisable even when the war in Ukraine began.

    The conclusion is simple.

    We need to step up.

    We need to spend more.

    And friends, we are.

    With the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War.

    And a cast iron guarantee to honour the promise we made to our NATO allies, to spend 3.5% of GDP on core defence by 2035.

    And we are well on our way with our investment plan.

    We are putting half a billion pounds into our UK Commando Force, giving them the latest drone technology as they help defend NATO’s High North.

    Over a billion pounds will help upgrade our British-made Typhoons.

    We will invest over 8 billion pounds to build a sixth-generation fighter jet, along with partners around the world, to ensure we can dominate the skies in decades to come.

    At sea, 1.3 billion pounds will give our Royal Navy new autonomous ships and underwater vessels to hunt threats, protect our waters and keep our enemies at a distance.

    And we are renewing another great Labour achievement, the protection provided every day by our nuclear deterrent. 

    I know that more spending on defence comes with choices and trade-offs. 

    But our critics on the right need to understand that you don’t make your country stronger by making our people poorer.

    And I also have to say directly to some of our critics on the left:

    You are not defending our public services by attacking investment in our national defences. 

    As a Labour Defence Secretary called Mr Healey once said:

    “Once we cut defence expenditure to the extent where our security is imperilled, we have no houses, we have no hospitals, we have no schools. We have a heap of cinders.”

    Denis Healey was right in 1969, and another Mr Healey called John was right to demand more when he was Defence Secretary just this year.

    In this Labour Chancellor we have a champion for defence.

    He knows it is not ‘either/or’ when it comes to public services and national security. 

    They depend upon one another.

    But with more money, comes greater responsibility.

    Every pound the Ministry of Defence spends must be spent well.

    And so today I make a promise:

    The Ministry of Defence I lead will be at the heart of our Prime Minister’s mission to reindustrialise Britain.

    Giving our young people skills, just like we’ve given Jack, to earn a good wage, in a good job, in their part of the country.

    Because there is neither an economic nor a moral justification for Britain’s defence sector hiring thousands of workers from abroad, when we have one million young people out of work here at home.

    But solving that problem needs more than words. 

    It demands bold action.

    And that is why today, the Chancellor and I are taking one of the biggest defence procurement decisions in a generation.

    The contract to build the docks for our nuclear subs.

    Our ultimate deterrent.

    Six billion pounds worth of work.

    Today, we commit to that contract staying in thiscountry.

    Supporting thousands of British jobs, for years to come.

    That is what growth in every post code means in practice.

    Backing Britain by buying British. 

    Nowhere is the Prime Minister’s appeal for problem solving, rather than point scoring, more relevant than on defence and national security.

    The Labour Party has a proud record of standing with our political opponents in the national interest.

    Clem Attlee did with Winston Churchill when he joined the Wartime Coalition.

    Michael Foot supported Margaret Thatcher when Argentina invaded the Falklands.

    And Keir Starmer supported Boris Johnson’s leadership on Ukraine. 

    But I am afraid we haven’t seen that responsible leadership from the current Leader of the Opposition.

    Nor have we seen her party taking any responsibility for the consequences of their failure to fund defence.

    The smallest army since the Napoleonic Wars.

    Every single recruitment target missed.

    Morale down 20%.

    Almost every equipment programme over-budget, behind schedule – often both.

    Our Armed Forces, in the words of their own Defence Secretary: “hollowed-out and under-funded”.

    So if Kemi Badenoch wants to go toe to toe with Labour on defence, we will wipe the floor with the Tories’ so comprehensively they will see their abysmal record reflected back at them.

    In the face of aggression from Russia and terrorism from those who hate our freedom, unity is strength.

    Let our allies and our adversaries hear this loud and clear: regardless of which party is leading in the polls or in parliament, our nation stands united.

    United behind our armed forces.

    United with Ukraine.

    United with NATO against Russian aggression.

    When it comes to keeping our country safe, we are far more united, and have far more in common, than the things that divide us.

    So let’s build that kind of politics. Problem solving not point scoring. 

    At no point in my lifetime has the threat of war loomed as large as it does today.


    Our adversaries are more dangerous, across more domains, and they are on our doorstep.

    To prevent the worst, we must prepare for it. We must meet this moment with action and with strength.


    John Healey and Dan Jarvis put in the hard yards to get the right plans and the right funding in place.

    Defence spending, up.

    Morale, up.

    New kit and equipment in the hands of our armed forces. 

    Lots done, but a lot more still to do.

    Because defending our country means more than strengthening our armed forces. It means strengthening the country they defend.

    Our enemies feed on division and fear. 

    Our leader, our Prime Minister, Andy Burnham is giving us hope again.

    Together, with this Labour Prime Minister and this Labour Government, we will build a country ready to fight and a Britain worth fighting for. 

    Thank you. 

  • Alex Davies-Jones – 2026 Speech at the United Nations Crime Congress

    Alex Davies-Jones – 2026 Speech at the United Nations Crime Congress

    The speech made by Alex Davies-Jones, the Minister for Victims, on 28 September 2026.

    Your Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen…

    It’s a huge honour to be here…

    Thank you to the United Arab Emirates Government for bringing us all together…

    And to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and Executive Director, for their leadership.

    The United Kingdom greatly values its partnership with the UAE, including our work to tackle illicit finance.

    That partnership goes right to the heart of this Congress:

    Crime does not respect borders.

    It’s ever more organised…

    Ever more sophisticated.

    So our response has to be every bit as connected, and relentless…

    It has to be built on co-operation, and a determination to act– together.

    That could not be more important than in tackling violence against women and girls.

    At home, the UK has an ambitious goal:

    To halve this violence in a decade.

    But I do not want the fight to stop at our own borders.

    We want women and girls to live free from fear wherever they are in the world…

    And whether they are online, or offline.

    As more of our lives move into a digital space, abuse follows.

    The technology that connects and empowers…

    Also intimidates, and harms.

    On Sunday, the United Kingdom will host a side event on technology-facilitated violence against women and girls …

    And I hope you’ll join us later today…

    So that together, we can find truly global solutions to protect our women.

    We need for a genuinely global response applies to fraud, too.

    The United Kingdom was proudly the main donor to this year’s UNODC-INTERPOL Global Fraud Summit.

    But now we need to turn commitments made there into actual action…

    And I’m looking forward to discussions and commitments made on maintaining momentum this week…

    And strengthening our response even more.

    The United Kingdom is also committed to UNODC’s Global Programme on Implementing the Organized Crime Convention…

    And promoting the Organized Crime Strategy Toolkit…

    Supporting thousands of practitioners in 20 countries worldwide.

    And this year, we’re investing £1.5 million more into initiatives to counter organised crime

    But these criminals increasingly operate online…

    And today, almost every serious investigation relies on digital evidence.

    So our capabilities also have to keep pace.

    Making sure agencies can access the data that they need to counter serious, organised crime…

    Coupled with the right oversight…

    That is a priority for the UK…

    And we will also carry on working with our friends around the world…

    To strengthen policing and justice systems…

    And also share our expertise and knowledge.

    But we also need to look ahead.

    AI gives us huge opportunities to deliver swifter, faster, fairer justice for the public we serve.

    The UK is pursuing this responsibly, through our AI Action Plan…

    And while keeping public trust, human rights and the rule of law at the heart of everything we do.

    Friends, no country can tackle these challenges alone.

    It’s only by sharing expertise…

    And working together…

    That we can build justice systems that are stronger…

    More effective…

    Trusted….

    And safer societies for all.

    I can’t wait to see what this Congress will achieve.

    With a view to advancing crime prevention and criminal justice, I pledge that, between 2026 and 2031, the UK will:

    • Provide financial support to dismantle transnational scam compounds in Southeast Asia and strengthen our collective response to fraud.
    • Build capacity across Ukraine’s justice system, including prisons, probation, and rehabilitation, with continued support for law enforcement and criminal justice reform.
    • Launch a call for evidence on online misogynistic image-based abuse, to identify new harms and how we respond to them.
    • Introduce effective protections on phones and tablets, to stop our children from taking, sharing or viewing nude images, legislating to secure compliance if required.
    • Continue supporting the UNODC’s Global Programme on Implementing the Organized Crime Convention, helping states develop evidence-based responses to transnational organised crime.
    • And protect survivors when they cross borders, hosting the first ever Hague Conference Working Group meeting in London later this year, to strengthen international cooperation.

    Thank you.

  • Ed Miliband – 2026 Speech on the Two State Solution

    Ed Miliband – 2026 Speech on the Two State Solution

    The speech made by Ed Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, in New York on 24 September 2026.

    As the son of two Jewish refugees, I speak to this gathering as somebody with profound gratitude for the state of Israel for looking after my grandmother after the Second World War, after she lost her husband at the hands of the Nazis.  

    I speak as someone that, I think everyone in this room would agree, was appalled by the attacks of October the seventh by Hamas and the murder that they perpetrated.  

    But I can speak equally as somebody appalled by the suffering of the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank.  

    There is only one route to security, freedom, and dignity for the Israelis and Palestinian people, and that is the two-state solution. But the truth is that we all now have belief in the two-state solution, but it is being destroyed by the facts on the ground. The latest being the E1 tender that took place in August of this year.  

    That is why the UK government, alongside France and Canada, following the fantastic example of countries like Ireland and Spain, the Netherlands, and Norway, took the decision to not only declare that the occupation of the territories was illegal, but to take action on the basis of our economic relationships with the illegal settlements: the banning of the import of goods, and the attempt to break off the supply lines of finance and construction to settlement expansion.  

    These are necessary steps, but they are not sufficient.  

    It is good that we acted with others.  

    It is important that we say that the work of the Palestinian Authority to provide a single legitimate Palestinian framework is important.  

    It is important that we say that Hamas will play no role in the future governments of Gaza, but it must decommission weapons and must irradicate terrorism.  

    It is important also that we support the U.S.-led 20-point plan.  

    But let us be absolutely honest in this room, that the biggest danger we face is in a year’s time, we are sitting here again talking about the importance of the two-state solution and the facts on the ground that only got worse.  

    So, what is it that we need to do?  

    I think there are two things that will make all the difference, and I think all of the countries in this room and those not in this room to consider this.  

    First of all, moral clarity about what is happening. If we are silent, if we avoid the truth, then we cannot hope to make progress.  

    And secondly, political pressure on the government of Israel. This is absolutely crucial to making a difference. I chaired with Jordan this morning a meeting about the humanitarian situation in Gaza. The humanitarian situation in Gaza, the blocking of basic medical supplies, children dying waiting for operations, waiting for treatment, should shame us all. It should shame the whole international community, and indeed, I think it should shame members of the Israeli government, who are letting this happen.  

    So I appeal to everybody in this room. Let us think very, very hard about what we can do in the weeks and months ahead, so that we do not meet again in a year’s time with more suffering, more tragedy for the people of Gaza and the West Bank. Thank you, Council.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2026 Speech on Active Travel

    Heidi Alexander – 2026 Speech on Active Travel

    The speech made by Heidi Alexander, the Transport Secretary, in Manchester on 22 September 2026.

    Good morning, everyone. And thank you, Chris [Boardman], for that introduction.

    It’s really, really good to be here with so many of you this morning (22 September 2026).

    I’ve often found myself in Manchester in recent months – I’ve no idea why – but somebody (perhaps that bloke called Andy [Burnham]) tells me it’s the place to be.

    I also know there is a panel discussion later, so I won’t take up too much time in my opening remarks.

    However, I did want to touch on briefly about the why, the how and the what of this government’s approach to active travel.

    Why active travel matters – to me personally and to the government as a whole. 

    How we want to work with you.  

    And what we, and I mean all of us here, are delivering.

    Personal reflections

    So let’s start, as all good stories as they do, in Swindon – my hometown.

    For me, it starts with a blue bike with a white basket and a set of very solid stabilisers – which was my first bike as a 3- or 4-year-old.

    Now it won’t surprise anyone that, in the 1980s, the town which gave us 6 roundabouts in one (which is otherwise known as the magic roundabout) – wasn’t particularly cycle-friendly.

    But it never really stopped me.

     As a teenager, a bike gave me my first job.

    Two early morning paper rounds, on my dad’s old road bike, with 2 massive orange bags nestled under either armpit, all done in the hours before college. I just wish I could get up those same hills now without stopping.

    It gave me good health.

    A way to clear my head out on the hills of the Ridgeway when I was doing my A-levels – a route I still do now but with the aid of an electric Brompton.

    It gave me independence, which is at the heart of what I believe active travel is all about. And it gave me joy. It never really leaves you, does it?

    It didn’t leave me in my 20s, when I cycled 7 miles across London when I first moved to our capital city to do a temp job, because I couldn’t afford the cost of a travel card.

    It didn’t leave me as the Deputy Mayor of London, where, alongside Will Norman, I helped deliver segregated cycle lanes and lower speeds on some of London’s busiest roads. 

    People often ask me what I’m most proud of from my time working as Deputy Mayor of London and everyone always thinks I will say the Elizabeth line.

    But I’m just as proud of delivering segregated cycling infrastructure on Cycleway 4 going down to Greenwich, which now gives thousands and thousands of people joy every day.

    So my determination to deliver on active travel hasn’t left me.

    Building the integrated transport network

    And as Transport Secretary, I’m really serious about building that integrated transport network.

    I’m really serious about increasing the use of public transport.

    And if we’re serious about giving people the choice and the tools to get out and get on, then the days of active travel being an afterthought, or a bolt-on, must end.

    Instead, I think we need to see walking, wheeling and cycling for what they are.

    Essential parts of everyday journeys. That walk to the bus stop. Wheeling along a station platform. The cycle to work, to school, or to the shops.

    It’s not about pitting one mode of travel against another. No one is declaring war on this or that. And you definitely won’t find me leading a charge of the lycra brigade.

    I simply want to give people greater choice in their lives.

    I want a coherent transport system where each stage of a journey complements the next.

    Where accessibility is baked in. Where signage is clear and simple. Where all of us – from Olympians like Chris [Boardman] to fair-weather cyclists like me – feel confident and safe to choose the more active option.

    Sounds too good to be true, doesn’t it? Not necessarily.

    Look outside here [Manchester] and you’ll see a city setting the benchmark.

    The Bee Network

    I truly believe that the Bee Network is devolution’s greatest success story.

    And I’m not just saying that to flatter Chris, who was one of its main architects.

    Nor to curry favour with my new boss, who was its biggest champion. But I say it simply because it’s true.

    And let’s not forget, the Bee Network was originally the active travel plan for Greater Manchester.

    Andy loved it so much he brought the rest of the transport network under its banner.

    A one-stop shop for getting around this great city – and it started with a bold vision for active travel. 

    And just look at the results: 700 million active travel trips taken last year.

    That’s almost a walk, a wheel or a cycle every working day for each resident.  

    And this isn’t by accident, but by design.

    We’ve seen a surge in active travel where new safe routes have been completed.

    Like on the Chorlton Cycle Way or on Oxford Road – showing the demand for active travel exists, we just need to give people a chance to realise it.

    The future of active travel

    Yes, that’s about better infrastructure – of course it is.

    But it’s also about where the power to make decisions lies.

    Decisions about pavement parking. Decisions about school streets. And it’s that ability to see and meet an area’s needs.

    The small things national leaders are blind to, yet which are blindingly obvious to many of you. which is why I’ve always felt the levers of power must be held locally.

    And I’m so pleased that devolutionary spirit runs through the latest cycling and walking investment strategy.

    Delivered locally by mayors and councils. Supported nationally by Active Travel England.

    The vision is simple: safe, easy, accessible choices for more people in more places.

    Taken together, billions will be invested in active travel by 2030.

    Most of that will be devolved to local government, meaning record multi-year funding to make good on their long-term plans.

    And we must be ambitious.

    At least 60% of children should be walking and cycling to school by 2035 – building on the landmark agreement we’ve signed with mayors to deliver 3,500 miles of footways, safer crossings and cycle lanes.

    It’s why we are supporting local pilots, including for wayfinding, as we move towards a consistent national Active Travel Network.

    And finally, it’s why, today, I can announce £104 million to transform the National Cycle Network. That means maintaining and expanding the 12,000-mile network.

    Fixing bridges and updating signage. As well as developing new routes around the High Speed Two (HS2) line.

    Heart of government’s vision

    So let me finish with this.

    I can think of few better ways to deliver on the Prime Minister’s vision than by going hell for leather on active travel.

    Because when Andy talks of giving people hope, I see the millions of extra journeys we’re unlocking by foot, by cycle or wheels – journeys that connect us to jobs, to friends, to the things that matter most. 

    When Andy talks of places in which we’re proud to live, I see roads that are less congested and more safe. High streets with a new lease of life. Women and girls able to breathe a little easier when walking home alone.

    And when Andy talks of Britain back on its feet, I see the sick days we avoid, the productivity we gain, and the burden we lift on the NHS – all by being more active.

    In the end, active travel is more than just another way to get around.

    It’s about connecting people with the lives they aspire to lead. While designing places in which we all aspire to live. 

    And so a conversation about footways, junctions and wayfinding ends up being a reflection on the type of country we want to be.

    That’s why conferences like this matter.

    It’s why the work all of you do matters so much.

    And it’s why I am determined to work with you to put active travel at the heart of our transport network.

    Thank you and enjoy the rest of the conference.