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Liz Truss vowed to “get Britain through the tempest” and insisted “everyone will benefit” from the result of her economic policies in her keynote party conference speech during which she was heckled by climate activists.

Addressing Conservative members at the event in Birmingham, as she battles to save her premiership, the prime minister acknowledged that “these are stormy days”.

“In these tough times, we need to step up,” she continued.

“I am determined to get Britain moving, to get us through the tempest and put us on a stronger footing as a nation.”

Liz Truss’s speech stopped by protest – Politics latest

She continued: “Whenever there is change there is disruption. Not everyone will be in favour but everyone will benefit from the result.”

Ms Truss was interrupted by two Greenpeace protesters who shouted: “Who voted for this,” as they held up a banner.

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They were quickly removed by security in the conference hall.

In a tweet after the incident, Greenpeace said activists were there to “denounce the prime minister ‘shredding’ her party’s 2019 manifesto promises”.

The group added: “The PM is U-turning on fracking, strong climate action, and world-leading environmental protections. Who voted for this?”

Continuing, Ms Truss told the audience she and Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng “will keep closely co-ordinating our monetary and fiscal policy” after the government’s tax-cutting mini-budget saw the pound slump to a record level.

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This is the moment two Greenpeace protesters interrupted Liz Truss’s Conservative Party conference speech, with a banner reading

‘Chancellor and I are in lockstep’

She promised “an iron grip on the nation’s finances” and vowed to break Britain out of a “high-tax, low-growth cycle”, adding: “The chancellor and I are in lockstep on this.”

Ms Truss said she is “working flat out” to make sure people can get through the economic crisis.

“So let me be clear: we have your back,” the PM added.

The Conservative leader said she and Mr Kwarteng U-turned on abolishing the 45p tax rate on top earners because it “became a distraction”.

“I get it and I have listened,” she told the audience.

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Liz Truss speech highlights

The tax cut for the wealthiest 1% was one of a raft announced by Mr Kwarteng in his mini-budget less than two weeks ago that led to market turmoil – with the pound plummeting, mortgage products being withdrawn, and the Bank of England having to step in to rescue pension funds.

On Tuesday, Home Secretary Suella Braverman accused Tory MPs of staging a “coup” against the PM over the 45p tax rate.

Fellow cabinet minister Simon Clarke also publicly disclosed his objection to the reversal of the policy.

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Home secretary attacks Tory MPs who ‘staged coup’ over tax cut

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Prime Minister Liz Truss has promised ‘an iron grip on the nation’s finances’ and vowed to break Britain out of a ‘high-tax, low-growth cycle’, adding that she and Kwasi Kwarteng are ‘in lockstep on this’.

‘Growth, growth and growth’

Outlining her three priorities for Britain’s economy: “growth, growth and growth”, Ms Truss said she “will not allow the anti-growth coalition of Labour, the Lib Dems and the SNP to hold us back”.

She accused Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer of having “no long-term plan and no vision for Britain”.

Hinting at more “disruption”, the PM also promised that her government will always be “fiscally responsible”.

Ms Truss received applause for saying she is the first prime minister to have gone a comprehensive school.

Gordon Brown went to a state school which was selective but is now comprehensive, John Major went to a grammar school that is now a comprehensive and Theresa May went to a grammar school which became a comprehensive while she was there.

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Truss: ‘No shame’ over tax U-turn

‘I don’t want my song used as soundtrack to lies’

The prime minister walked onto the stage to M People’s ‘Moving on Up’.

But one member of the 90s dance band was not pleased with the song being used, posting on social media: “I don’t want my song being a soundtrack to lies.”

Labour also pointed out that Heather Small from M People has attended Labour dinners in the past and that her son is a recently elected Labour councillor.

The first standing ovation came when Ms Truss referenced the war in Ukraine, telling the audience of Tory members: “We will make sure this never happens again.”

But the speech, which was just over half an hour long, contained no new policy announcements and made no reference to benefits – which the PM is facing another split within her cabinet over.

On Tuesday, Leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt joined backbench rebels in calling for welfare payments to be raised in line with inflation, which has been at around 10%, rather than earnings at 5%.

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Do the public and cabinet still trust Truss?

‘Status quo not an option’

Two additional cabinet ministers have also told Sky News that they believe benefits should be uprated in line with inflation.

It is understood that Chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Conservative MPs Sir Graham Brady has warned Ms Truss that any attempt to uprate benefits by average earnings rather than by inflation is unlikely to get through Parliament.

But closing her first conference speech as PM, Ms Truss vowed to “stay the course” amid the infighting within the Conservative Party over her policy agenda.

She urged both Tory members and MPs to “trust me to do what it takes” to push through her “difficult but necessary” pro-growth agenda.

“The status quo is not an option. That is why we can’t give in to the voices of decline,” she said.

“We can’t give in to those who say Britain can’t grow faster. We can’t give in to those who say we can’t do better.”

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‘Reverse kamikaze budget’

Responding to the speech, Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said: “The most important thing the prime minister can do right now to stabilise the economy is to immediately reverse her government’s kamikaze budget when Parliament returns next week.”

While Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey described the address as a “disaster for families and the economy”.

Ms Truss exited the stage to applause and quickly left the conference venue.

The under-pressure pound fell against the US dollar following her speech.

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Jaguar Land Rover to ‘pause’ US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

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Jaguar Land Rover to 'pause' US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will “pause” shipments to the US as the British car firm works to “address the new trading terms” of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The US president has introduced a 25% levy on all foreign cars imported into the country, which came into force on Thursday.

JLR, one of the country’s biggest carmakers, exported about 38,000 cars to the US in the third quarter of 2024 – almost equal to the amount sold to the UK and the EU combined.

Follow live updates: Trump’s baseline 10% tariff kicks in

In a statement on Saturday, a spokesperson for the company behind the Jaguar, Land Rover and Range Rover brands said: “The USA is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands.

“As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans.”

The company released a statement last week before Mr Trump announced a “baseline” 10% tariff on goods from around the world, which kicked in on Saturday morning, on what he called “liberation day”.

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JLR reassured customers its business was “resilient” and “accustomed to changing market conditions”.

“Our priorities now are delivering for our clients around the world and addressing these new US trading terms,” the firm said.

Trading across the world has been hit by Mr Trump’s tariff announcement at the White House on Wednesday.

All but one stock on the FTSE 100 fell on Friday – with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those to suffer the sharpest losses.

Read more: A red wall on Wall Street – but Trump seems to believe it will work out

Cars are the top product exported from the UK to the US, with exports worth £8.3bn in the year to the end of September 2024, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

For UK carmakers, the US is the second largest export market behind the European Union.

Industry groups have previously warned the tariffs will force firms to rethink where they trade, while a report by thinktank the Institute for Public Policy Research said more than 25,000 car manufacturing jobs in the UK could be at risk.

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

Two people have died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness, Lincolnshire Police have said.

In a statement, officers said they were called at 3.53am on Saturday to a report of a blaze at Golden Beach Holiday Park in the village of Ingoldmells.

Fire and rescue crews attended the scene, and two people were found to have died.

They were reported to be a 10-year-old girl and a 48-year-old man.

The force said the victims’ next of kin have been informed and will be supported by specially trained officers.

Officers are trying to establish the exact cause of the blaze.

“We are at the very early stages of our investigation and as such we are keeping an open mind,” the force said.

Two fire crews remain at the scene.

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Boy dies after ‘getting into difficulty’ in lake in southeast London

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Boy dies after 'getting into difficulty' in lake in southeast London

A 15-year-old boy has died after “getting into difficulty” in a lake in southeast London, police say.

Officers and paramedics were called shortly after 3pm on Friday to Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham.

The Metropolitan Police said a boy “was recovered from the lake” at around 10.42pm the same day.

“He was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced dead. His death is being treated as unexpected but not believed to be suspicious,” according to the force.

The boy’s family has been told and are being supported by specialist officers.

The force originally said the child was 16 years old, but has since confirmed his age as 15.

In the earlier statement, officers said emergency services carried out a search and the park was evacuated.

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google street view inside Beckenham Place park, Lewisham where a 16 y/o boy is missing after getting into difficulty in a lake
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Emergency teams were called to Beckenham Place Park on Friday afternoon

Beckenham Place Park, which borders the London borough of Bromley, covers around 240 acres, according to the park’s website.

The lake is described as 285 metres long, reaching depths of up to 3.5 metres.

It is designed as a swimming lake for open-water swimming and paddle boarding.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said on Friday: “We were called at 3.02pm this afternoon to reports of a person in the water.

“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.”

Emergency teams have not explained how the boy entered the water, or whether he was accompanied by others.

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