Politics

Read about the latest UK political news, views and analysis.

Tuesday

2 Oct 2018

Boris Johnson sets out his stall – but stops short of a challenge

Boris Johnson’s Brexit rally was everything that No 10 had been dreading. Queues for the event began three hours in advance and saw activists block stairways and corridors across the conference hall in a bid to see the former foreign secretary’s moment in the spotlight. Some members in the audience even dressed up for the occasion – with Boris Johnson t-shirts. The front row was filled with Johnson’s Parliamentary supporters – including David Davis, Zac Goldsmith and Iain Duncan Smith. His siblings – Jo and Rachel – were notably absent despite both attending this year’s conference. Proving he is still a star attraction, Johnson received a standing ovation as soon

Boris Johnson

Full text: Boris Johnson’s Tory fringe speech

Good afternoon my friends and fellow ConHomers. It is great to be here in Birmingham where so many thoroughfares in the city are already named after our superb Conservative mayor. I know this conference is going to be a staggering success because just in the last couple of days about a dozen far left Momentum activists have kindly pledged their loyalty by ringing my private mobile phone. I put them straight on to Brandon. As Paul Goodman might confirm, I am not naturally of a timid disposition. It is not my way to confide my innermost fears. But since this is only a fringe meeting, unlikely to be widely reported,

Steerpike

Watch: Sajid Javid’s speech gaffe

Poor old Sajid Javid. While a huge queue of Tory activists were waiting to hear from Boris Johnson, there were empty seats in the main hall as the Home Secretary gave his speech. Things went from bad to worse for Sajid when he tripped over his words: ‘We will fight hope… hate… fight against hate, with hope’ Oh dear…

Sajid Javid

Full text: Sajid Javid’s Conservative conference speech

It’s a huge privilege to be standing here as Home Secretary. Now I know the question on your mind. So let’s just deal with it upfront. Yes, I did watch Bodyguard. No, it wasn’t very realistic. For a start, my codename is not Lavender, and she didn’t even do the power stance! But let me tell you about another story. A story which started in the 1960s. Abdul-Ghani Javid left Pakistan and landed in Heathrow. He spent what little he had on a coach ticket, had his first night here in Birmingham, then continued up north to Lancashire to find work in a cotton mill. After standing outside the mill

Steerpike

Conservative conference 2018, in pictures

It’s been a rather dry affair inside the main hall at Conservative conference this year, as ministers struggle to come up with new policies and a vision for the country that can unite and inspire voters. Fortunately, things are much more fun outside the main hall. At the conference’s various fringe events, activists and members have met for lively discussion, and shown there is some life in the party after all. Mr S has been spending the past few days in and around the conference in Birmingham to see what’s going on. (Mr S will update this post with new pictures as the conference continues.) About 15 anti-Brexit protestors

Steerpike

Boris fever hits Tory party conference

Boris Johnson has arrived at Tory party conference and excitement among activists is building ahead of his big speech at 1pm. Already a queue of party members is snaking through the conference centre – nearly three hours before Boris is due to take to the stage. Here’s Mr Steerpike’s video of those waiting in line to hear Boris speak: And here’s the moment Boris arrived… Mr S suspects the queue for the main conference hall won’t be quite so long. Meanwhile, for the lucky few that have made it inside, excitement is building…

Steerpike

Scottish Tories launch ‘Operation Stop Boris’

As Boris Johnson and the accompanying media circus descend on conference today, pundits have been asking – is he the Heineken statesman of old, or more of a Marmite politician? Judging by his popularity among his Scottish colleagues in parliament, Mr S can confidently say he’s not an Irn Bru political figure. The deep loathing Scottish Tory MPs have for Johnson was bared for all to see this morning, when the Daily Record revealed that they have hatched a plan to stop him from seizing power. The name of their scheme? ‘Operation Stop Arse’. According to the paper, they came up with the title ‘so we’d all be clear who

Tom Goodenough

There’s one thing Rees-Mogg and his loyal followers don’t agree on

Most politicians can only dream of having the cult following that Jacob Rees-Mogg is enjoying at Conservative party conference. His events are packed out an hour before they are due to start. Cries of ‘Mogg for PM’ have been heard. And when Rees-Mogg walked into the room at a Leave means Leave rally last night, he was greeted with wild applause just for turning up. Mogg’s loyal supporters hang on his every word, but there’s one thing on which they don’t agree with their idol on: whether it’s time for Theresa May to go. The problem for Rees-Mogg is that in firing up his followers to ‘chuck Chequers’, it’s difficult

Steerpike

Ministers leave plenty of empty seats at Conservative party conference

There was a time, back in the day, when cabinet ministers were the star attraction of the Conservative conference show. Attendees would queue round the block to hear from famous faces in the party and hear how they were going to tackle the biggest issues of the day. But those days are no more. Instead, at this year’s conference, Mr S has noticed that turnout in the main hall has been remarkably low. In fact, even the most recognisable members of cabinet have failed to fill up the main conference hall. So, Mr S has cast his eye round the ICC in Birmingham to find out where Conservative members have

The Spectator

Conservative party conference, day three: The Spectator guide | 2 October 2018

All eyes will be on Boris Johnson when he addresses the Tory fringes this afternoon. Expect the former foreign secretary to offer plenty of advice for the Prime Minister as she prepares for her keynote speech tomorrow. And on the main stage, Sajid Javid is the pick of the speakers: Conference listings: 10.00 – 12.30 Symphony Hall A STRONGER, FAIRER UNITED KINGDOM Secretary of State for Scotland Secretary of State for Wales Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Minister for the Cabinet Office Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Secretary of State for the Home DepartmentSession to include contributions from Party members

Monday

1 Oct 2018

Ruth Davidson

Full text: Ruth Davidson’s Conservative conference speech

Friends, it’s great to be back here in Birmingham. Seven years ago, I came to conference looking to lead the party north of the border. I promised you I would grow the Conservative family in Scotland. Well, never let it be said, I’m not a woman of my word. Conference, there are plenty of things I could talk to you about today. I could tell you about the fantastic work our 31 MSPs are doing in Holyrood, day by day holding Nicola Sturgeon’s miserablist SNP government to account. I could let you know about the work of our superb 13 Scottish Conservative and Unionist MPs. Who, day by day, are showing that you can stand

Philip Hammond

Full text: Philip Hammond’s Conservative conference speech

Liz, thank you for that introduction……and for tearing yourself away from your beloved Instagram account for a few minutes. And thank you too for being such a great Chief Secretary and stalwart defender of the public purse. My kids think I’m tight with money…but they haven’t met Liz Truss. And in a world obsessed with stories of division and rift in Whitehall… I want to hold up my fantastic team at the Treasury as an example of how we can – and do – work together and support each other. So a big “thank you” to all of them. Liz, ministers Mel Stride, John Glen, Rob Jenrick and in the Lords, Michael Bates;

Roger Awan-Scully

The humiliating end to Leanne Wood’s Plaid Cymru leadership | 1 October 2018

‘The morning had been golden; the noontide was bronze; and the evening lead.’ So said Churchill about the career of Lord Curzon. But these words could also summarise the leadership of Plaid Cymru by Leanne Wood – a leadership that came to an abrupt and rather humiliating end on Friday. Most observers of politics outside Wales, and plenty of people even within Wales, only really became aware of Leanne Wood after the televised leaders’ debates during the 2015 general election. By that point, she had actually been leader of her party for more than three years. Wood was a surprise leader – even to herself. First elected to the Welsh

D Reilly

The Tories’ Boris Johnson problem

I watched the Tory party conference on television this morning for as long as I could take it. Obviously I wouldn’t under normal circumstances – nobody sane would – but I’d been left in sole charge of a six-month old child (my son) and I wanted him to understand that life is very often pain. We made it through Dominic Raab’s bore-athon, but during Philip Hammond’s effort one of us filled his pants and so I turned it off. It seemed an appropriate protest. Why were the speeches so bad? And, more to the point, why did the speakers seem such unbelievable dullards? There’s no excuse. This is their job.

Steerpike

Watch: ‘Sack the woman’ – Jacob Rees-Mogg heckled at Brexit rally

It’s safe to say that Jacob Rees-Mogg isn’t keen on the Prime Minister’s Chequers plan. But Rees-Mogg has still stopped short of calling for Theresa May to go. Some other Brexit supporters don’t agree and think it is time for Tory Brexiteers to call an end to May’s time in office. One such activist made their feelings knows at a ‘Leave means Leave’ rally on the fringes of Tory conference this evening: Rees-Mogg: ‘This is exactly what the Prime Minister said she would not do at Lancaster House.’ Heckler: ‘Sack the woman!’ RM: ‘No, no.’ Heckler: ‘Sack her now – get your letter in.’ RM: ‘Certainly not! But thank you

Steerpike

Damian Green lashes out at Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson continues to be the target of attacks from fellow Tory MPs at the party’s conference in Birmingham, even though he’s not yet even arrived in town. Yesterday, it was Digby Jones and Philip Hammond who took a swipe at him. Today, it’s former deputy PM Damian Green. At a Spectator fringe event, Green was asked whether it is good news that Boris was ready to sing about the Tories’ achievements at party conference tomorrow: ‘I don’t think Boris is waiting in the wings. I don’t think Boris waits for anything…and tomorrow we will be having the annual Boris performance. Unfortunately, I won’t be there, as, um, I’ll be washing

James Forsyth

What Ruth Davidson’s speech says about the second referendum debate

For a certain wing of the Tory party, Ruth Davidson is their Queen over the water. Their fondness for her was only increased by her saying that she won’t run for leader because she cares too much for her mental health and relationship. So it was striking that the Tories decided that the best use of Davidson at this conference was to argue against a second referendum. Davidson made all the usual arguments against a second referendum with typical gusto. She argued that another Brexit vote would lead ‘to more division, more rancour and a politics trapped in the past.’ But what was most interesting was the fact that this

Isabel Hardman

Michael Gove gives Tory activists something to finally cheer about

We may have just witnessed the first outbreak of genuine interest from the Conservative conference floor. Michael Gove was speaking to the not-full room, and bookended his speech with praise for the history of the Tory party. He started by telling the hall that ‘As we know all too well from our history, if you want a mess cleared up you need a Conservative Government‘, and turned again at the end to listing Conservative achievements: ‘Some people might say that we are setting our sights too high. To them I say, you don’t know our party. It was Conservatives who abolished the slave trade, cleared Victorian slums, made working conditions decent

Michael Gove

Full text: Michael Gove’s Conservative conference speech

Our island nation has been defined by its relationship with the sea. It has been our doorway to global trade, a treasure house of oil and gas, and the home to teeming stocks of fish. But now our oceans are in danger. Danger from climate change, from chemical residues, from exploitation and indeed from plastic. The equivalent of a dumper truck of plastic is dropped in the sea every minute of every day. Unless we change course, by the year 2050 the seas will contain more plastic than fish. We cannot, and we will not, allow that to happen. Which is why we need, in the words of Winston Churchill, action this day. And we are acting. Already

Katy Balls

Jacob Rees-Mogg: We need to stop the ‘Ukip-isation’ of Brexit

The star of Conservative party conference so far can’t be found in the main hall. Instead, they are best spotted at fringe events – each of which ends up being an oversubscribed event that involves a massive queue. Step forward Jacob Rees-Mogg. The arch-Brexiteer has been causing a scene wherever he goes with activists stopping him for photos. At today’s Policy Exchange fringe event – titled ‘Can the Conservatives win in Canterbury and Middlesbrough at the same time?’ – the Moggster only needed to take his seat on the panel to trigger cries of ‘Mogg for PM!’ from the audience. Although Rees-Mogg has repeatedly ruled himself out as a future