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Labour are promising to “get Britain’s future back” as the party meets for its annual conference.

Proceedings get under way in Liverpool on Saturday with Labour’s women’s conference, before the full summit starts on Sunday.

It follows the Tory conference last week, which was beset by leaks about the scrapping of HS2 – as those hoping to succeed Rishi Sunak made a splash.

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Labour will be hoping to capitalise on its recent win in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election, which deputy leader Angela Rayner called a “seismic result”.

She told Sky News: “One of the challenges we face – because the Conservatives crashed the economy and the situation we’re going to inherit – is that we won’t be able to reverse everything that the Conservatives have done over the last 13 years.

“But we’re very determined to give Britain its future back.”

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Asked about her own ambitions, Ms Rayner said: “I would have an absolute honour and a privilege if I was able to be the deputy prime minister of this country.

“That’s my ambition and my ambition is to get into government, not for me, but for the people out there who deserve that change.

“The Conservatives have delivered chaos for people.

“I want people to have the opportunities that the last Labour government delivered for me, and I’m determined to make sure that we get into government to deliver that for people.”

Ms Rayner is promising a government that will “deliver the biggest boost to affordable, social and council housing for a generation” and prevent developers “wriggling out of their responsibilities”.

Housing is one of many areas that party members will be hoping to hear more details on, with some accusing the party of being light on detail with its policies, including issues such as the cancellation of HS2.

Business and the economy are other areas where Labour want to show they are ready for government.

The party is keen to show it has companies such as Gatwick Airport, Scottish Renewables, Specsavers, Ikea and McVities hosting stands for the first time – with the likes of John Lewis and Mastercard speaking to a “sold-out” business forum.

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Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper will also announce a plan to require police to target the most dangerous abusers and sex offenders using counter-terror style tactics.

“Under Labour, the police will be asked to relentlessly pursue the perpetrators who pose the greatest risk to women, and use all the tools at their disposal to protect victims and get dangerous offenders off the streets,” she said.

“The police should be exhausting every opportunity for enforcement, prevention and protection – too often failure to do so has had devastating and fatal consequences.” 

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Meanwhile, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting renewed his pledge to “modernise or die” in an interview with The Times, promising a Labour government would funnel £171m a year into a “fit for the future” fund for purchasing new equipment to cut NHS waiting times.

He said the money would be enough to double the number of CT and MRI scanners over a parliament so that patients can get diagnosed earlier.

After Ms Rayner’s speech on Sunday, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves will speak on Monday, with party leader Sir Keir Starmer on Tuesday.

It’s during this speech he will “outline plans to get Britain’s future back” – a slogan he has used before.

Read more:
Ten conference moments that made headlines

Who is Angela Rayner?

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Starmer: ‘We are the party of change’

Another policy pledge expected to be announced by Ms Rayner is the “biggest-ever transfer of power out of Westminster”, a policy touted last year at an event with former prime minister Gordon Brown.

Speaking on Friday, Ms Rayner said: “Rishi Sunak and the Tories have time and time again taken a sledgehammer to the foundations a good life can be built upon. Decent jobs, secure homes and strong communities are being snatched away from people.

“With five prime ministers in seven years and constant chaos and instability, Britain’s future has been left to take a back seat. The Tories’ legacy is national decline – a nation levelled down and starved of hope.

“While the Tories have stolen Britain’s future, it’s Labour that will give it back with our plan to make working people better off by securing growth for all people and in all places.”

Anneliese Dodds, the chair of the Labour Party, said her party had “the plans to unlock growth, make our streets safe, secure the future of the NHS, break down barriers to opportunity and make the UK a green energy superpower”.

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Most RWAs remain isolated and underutilized instead of composable, DeFi-ready building blocks. It’s time to change that.

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Heidi Alexander says ‘fairness’ will be government’s ‘guiding principle’ when it comes to taxes at next budget

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Heidi Alexander says 'fairness' will be government's 'guiding principle' when it comes to taxes at next budget

Another hint that tax rises are coming in this autumn’s budget has been given by a senior minister.

Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was asked if Sir Keir Starmer and the rest of the cabinet had discussed hiking taxes in the wake of the government’s failed welfare reforms, which were shot down by their own MPs.

Trevor Phillips asked specifically if tax rises were discussed among the cabinet last week – including on an away day on Friday.

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Tax increases were not discussed “directly”, Ms Alexander said, but ministers were “cognisant” of the challenges facing them.

Asked what this means, Ms Alexander added: “I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn’t recognise that at the budget, the chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out.

“We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.”

Ms Alexander said she wouldn’t comment directly on taxes and the budget at this point, adding: “So, the chancellor will set her budget. I’m not going to sit in a TV studio today and speculate on what the contents of that budget might be.

“When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle.”

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Afterwards, shadow home secretary Chris Philp told Phillips: “That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn.”

He then went on to repeat the Conservative attack lines that Labour are “crashing the economy”.

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Chris Philp also criticsed the government’s migration deal with France

Mr Philp then attacked the prime minister as “weak” for being unable to get his welfare reforms through the Commons.

Discussions about potential tax rises have come to the fore after the government had to gut its welfare reforms.

Sir Keir had wanted to change Personal Independence Payments (PIP), but a large Labour rebellion forced him to axe the changes.

With the savings from these proposed changes – around £5bn – already worked into the government’s sums, they will now need to find the money somewhere else.

The general belief is that this will take the form of tax rises, rather than spending cuts, with more money needed for military spending commitments, as well as other areas of priority for the government, such as the NHS.

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