Prime Minister Liz Truss heckled during conference speech that warns of ‘stormy days’ ahead amid cabinet split
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.
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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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.
A teenage girl who was killed after getting out of a police car on the M5 in Somerset has been named.
Tamzin Hall, 17 and from Wellington, was hit by a vehicle that was travelling southbound between junction 24 for Bridgwater and junction 25 for Taunton shortly after 11pm on Monday.
She had exited a police vehicle that had stopped on the northbound side of the motorway while transporting her.
A mandatory referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which is now carrying out its own investigation into what happened.
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Avon and Somerset Police said: “Our thoughts and sympathies go out to Tamzin’s family for their devastating loss.
“A specially-trained family liaison officer remains in contact with them to keep them updated and to provide support.
“The family have asked for privacy at this difficult time.”
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The police watchdog, the IOPC, has been asked to investigate.
In a statement, director David Ford, said: “This was a truly tragic incident and my thoughts are with Tamzin’s family and friends and everyone affected by the events of that evening.
“We are contacting her family to express our sympathies, explain our role, and set out how our investigation will progress. We will keep them fully updated as our investigation continues.”
Paramedics attended the motorway within minutes of the girl being hit but she was pronounced dead at the scene.
The motorway was closed in both directions while investigations took place. It was fully reopened shortly after 11am on Tuesday, Nationals Highways said.
A survivors group advocating for women allegedly assaulted by Mohamed al Fayed has said it is “grateful another abuser has been unmasked”, after allegations his brother Salah also participated in the abuse.
Justice for Harrods Survivors says it has “credible evidence” suggesting the sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated at Harrods and the billionaire’s properties “was not limited to Mr al Fayed himself”.
The group’s statement comes after three women told BBC News they were sexually assaulted by al Fayed’s brother, Salah.
One woman said she was raped by Mohamed al Fayed while working at Harrods.
Helen, who has waived her right to anonymity, said she then took a job working for his brother as an escape. She alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted while working at Salah’s home on Park Lane, London.
Two other women have told the BBC they were taken to Monaco and the South of France, where Salah sexually abused them.
Mohamed al Fayed. Pic: AP
The Justice for Harrod Survivors representatives said: “We are proud to support the survivors of Salah Fayed’s abuse and are committed to achieving justice for them, no matter what it takes.”
The group added it “looks forward to the others on whom we have credible evidence – whether abusers themselves or enablers facilitating that abuse – being exposed in due course”.
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Salah was one of the three Fayed brothers who co-owned Harrods.
The business, which was sold to Qatar Holdings when Mohamed al Fayed retired in 2010, has said it “supports the bravery of these women in coming forward”.
A statement issued by the famous store on Thursday evening continued: “We encourage these survivors to come forward and make their claims to the Harrods scheme, where they can apply for compensation, as well as support from a counselling perspective and through an independent survivor advocate.
“We also hope that they are looking at every appropriate avenue to them in their pursuit of justice, whether that be Harrods, the police or the Fayed family and estate.”
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Bianca Gascoigne speaks about Al Fayed abuse
The Justice for Harrods Survivors group previously said more than 400 people had contacted them regarding accusations about Mohamed al Fayed, who died last year.
One of those alleged to have been abused is Bianca Gascoigne, the daughter of former England player Paul.
Speaking to Sky News in October, Gascoigne said she was groomed and sexually assaulted by al Fayed when she worked at Harrods as a teenager.
UK
Wes Streeting ‘crossed the line’ by opposing assisted dying in public, says Labour peer Harriet Harman
Wes Streeting “crossed the line” by opposing assisted dying in public and the argument shouldn’t “come down to resources”, a Labour peer has said.
Speaking on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunction podcast, Baroness Harriet Harman criticised the health secretary for revealing how he is going to vote on the matter when it comes before parliament later this month.
MPs are being given a free vote, meaning they can side with their conscience and not party lines, so the government is supposed to be staying neutral.
But Mr Streeting has made clear he will vote against legalising assisted dying, citing concerns end-of-life care is not good enough for people to make an informed choice, and that some could feel pressured into the decision to save the NHS money.
He has also ordered a review into the potential costs of changing the law, warning it could come at the expense of other NHS services if implemented.
Baroness Harman said Mr Streeting has “crossed the line in two ways”.
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“He should not have said how he was going to vote, because that breaches neutrality and sends a signal,” she said.
“And secondly… he’s said the problem is that it will cost money to bring in an assisted dying measure, and therefore he will have to cut other services.
“But paradoxically, he also said it would be a slippery slope because people will be forced to bring about their own death in order to save the NHS money. Well, it can’t be doing both things.
“It can’t be both costing the NHS money and saving the NHS money.”
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Review into assisted dying costs
Baroness Harman said the argument “should not come down to resources” as it is a “huge moral issue” affecting “only a tiny number of people”.
She added that people should not mistake Mr Streeting for being “a kind of proxy for Keir Starmer”.
“The government is genuinely neutral and all of those backbenchers, they can vote whichever way they want,” she added.
Read more on this story:
‘Fix care before assisted dying legislation’
Why assisted dying is controversial – and where it’s already legal
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously expressed support for assisted dying, but it is not clear how he intends to vote on the issue or if he will make his decision public ahead of time.
The cabinet has varying views on the topic, with the likes of Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood siding with Mr Streeting in her opposition but Energy Secretary Ed Miliband being for it.
Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Ed Miliband is said to support the bill. Pic: Reuters
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has concerns. Pic: Reuters
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The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is being championed by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater, who wants to give people with six months left to live the choice to end their lives.
Under her proposals, two independent doctors must confirm a patient is eligible for assisted dying and a High Court judge must give their approval.
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Labour MP Kim Leadbeater discusses End of Life Bill
The bill will also include punishments of up to 14 years in prison for those who break the law, including coercing someone into ending their own life.
MPs will debate and vote on the legislation on 29 November, in what will be the first Commons vote on assisted dying since 2015, when the proposal was defeated.
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