Nigel Farage has “blown a very loud dog whistle” by proposing an immigration policy that is “worse than racist”, Shabana Mahmood has said.

In a fierce attack on Reform UK, the Home Secretary said the insurgent right-wing party’s plans, which include abolishing indefinite leave to remain, were “immoral” and “extreme”.

In conversation with Tory peer Lord Michael Gove during an event on the fringes of Labour conference, Ms Mahmood suggested Mr Farage had sent an implicit signal to racists allowing him to claim “plausible deniability.”

David Lammy said the question of whether Israel’s actions amount to a genocide should be left up to the courts, but the public can reach its own judgment.

Responding to a vote at the Labour conference deeming Israel’s actions a genocide, the Justice Secretary said he believed in “the rules based order”.

He said: “That means that it must be for the ICJ with their judges and judiciary, and for the ICC, to determine the issue of genocide in relation to the convention, it is not for politicians like me to do that.

“But it is for the public to look at what they see and come to their own judgments about what they see.”

He added that last year he had decided “that I did see a clear risk that Israel was breaching international humanitarian law” and had suspended arms sales to Israel.

Sir Keir Starmer has suffered a blow at the Labour Party conference after activists demanded the Government prevents “the commission of a genocide in Gaza”.

The Unison trade union tabled the emergency motion on Monday, which also calls on Labour’s top team in Westminster to “ban trade with illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank” and apply “comprehensive sanctions”, including a full arms embargo, on Israel.

Activists in Liverpool voted for the motion in a show of hands, and it passed.

Moving the motion, Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: “This is genocide.

“But if we wait for this to be confirmed by a court, it will be too late, because it’s already happening as we sit here.”

Andy Burnham insisted he was supporting Sir Keir Starmer.

At a fringe event at the Labour party conference, he said he believed Sir Keir was the right man to be in No 10.

Asked if he thought Sir Keir was the right man to lead the Labour Party and the country, he replied: “Yes.”

Unite’s General Secretary Sharon Graham has slammed Rachel Reeves for forcing working people to pay the price in the coming Budget.

Ms Graham accused the Chancellor of pitting working people against pensioners in the search to find cash to restore the country’s finances.

She shouted: “This is supposed to be a Labour government. Instead of picking the pockets of pensioners, tax the rich!”

She got an enormous roar of a cheer from the audience.

“Instead of letting energy prices spiral out of control, renationalise our energy!

“I don’t understand and people don’t understand what is going on here. Bankers given back their bonuses, food prices are up by 38% and rising while Tesco has profits in one year of £3.1 billion. It is obscene!”

In response to the Home Secretary’s speech, Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice MP said: “Her speechwriters may have toughened her rhetoric, but the Home Secretary’s speech won’t wash with the public.

“Let’s not forget; this is a government that has talked a big game on illegal migration, all whilst welcoming the record number of illegal migrants that have landed on our shores.

“The choice is clear: a strong, common-sense approach that slashes migration and prioritises Brits with Reform UK, or a weak, watered-down imitation with Keir Starmer’s Labour Party.”

Shabana Mahmood confirmed plans to introduce stricter conditions for those seeking indefinite leave to remain.

The Home Secretary told Labour’s conference: “Because I know that the British people welcome those who come here and contribute, but contribution is a condition of that welcome.

“For that reason, we will soon increase the time in which someone must have lived in this country to earn ‘indefinite leave to remain’ from five years to 10.

“And we will be consulting on this change soon. And as part of that consultation, I will be proposing a series of new tests, such as: being in work; making national insurance contributions; not taking a penny in benefits; learning English to a high standard; having no criminal record; and finally, that you have truly given back to your community, such as by volunteering your time to a local cause.

“Without meeting these conditions, I do not believe your ability to stay in this country should be automatic.”

In her speech to Labour’s conference, Shabana Mahmood said: “I will do whatever it takes to secure our borders.

“Cracking down on the criminal gangs behind the trade. Discouraging those who are considering a small boat crossing. Sending those home who have no right to be here. And ending the use of hotels, that totem of the Tory legacy that has done so much to divide our communities.

“In solving this crisis, you may not always like what I do. We will have to question some of the assumptions and legal constraints that have lasted for a generation and more.

“But unless we have control of our borders, and until we can decide who comes in and who must leave, we will never be the open, tolerant and generous country that I know we all believe in.”

Working-class communities will turn away from Labour and “seek solace in the false promises of Farage” if the Government fails to get a grip on the small boats crisis, the Home Secretary has said.

Addressing the Labour conference, Shabana Mahmood said: “They will turn towards something smaller, something narrower, something less welcoming, and the division within this country will grow.

“So, the challenge we now face is this, not just to win the next election, but to keep the country together and to fight for our belief in a greater Britain, not a littler England.

“That work begins at our borders, where we must restore order and control.

“We will always remain a country that gives refuge to those who are fleeing peril, but we can only be open to the world if we are able to determine who comes in and who must leave. It is clear there is more work to be done.”

Responding to the Chancellor’s speech, Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “Rachel Reeves says she won’t risk the public finances but she’s already doing that – with more borrowing, higher spending, and more taxes.

“Labour has raised taxes by £40 billion per year, including a £25 billion tax on jobs, and now won’t rule out coming back for more.

“Labour refuse to tackle rising welfare costs and won’t commit to keeping the two-child benefit cap – just like Reform.

“Labour spends more, taxes more, and blames others when things go wrong. Under them, nothing is safe – not your job, savings, or pension.

“Only the Conservatives under new leadership will support business, control welfare, and live within our means to build a stronger economy.”

David Lammy has become the latest Labour politician to brand Reform’s plan to scrap indefinite leave to remain as “racist”.

Referring to Nigel Farage, the Deputy Prime Minister claimed French people would be deported under Reform’s plans.

He said: “He wraps himself in our flag, but his policies don’t match British values.

“We must call his scheme to round up and deport our French, our Indian, our Caribbean neighbours, who already have indefinite leave to remain what it is – it is racist – and say not in our country, not in our name, not in our time.”

Reform has previously said the plan to scrap indefinite leave would only apply to those not from the EU.

Mr Lammy also took a shot at the Tories, saying shadow lord chancellor Robert Jenrick’s attacks on judges would “make Winston Churchill shudder in his grave”.

He said: “Robert, patriotism isn’t smearing our independent judiciary from a pub on X. It’s standing up for the rule of law.”

The Chancellor took aim at the Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham during her speech on the main stage at Labour’s party conference.

Read the full story here

Burnham declines to accuse Farage and Reform of being racist.

“I’m not going to say that. But I do see policies that are discriminatory and extreme”

Hang on, Burnham now refuses to deny having conversations with Labour MPs about launching a leadership coup.

He merely says he has lots of conversations with MPs about many things.

Andy Burnham denies ever claiming that Labour MPs have been calling him asking him to oust Keir Starmer.

Burnham claims he only said Labour MPs had talked to him, without going into what they’ve spoken about.

Go back to the Blair and brown govt. It was different in those days.

I’m struggling to think of people Who lost the whip.

There was a feeling then that people from all wings of the party were important.

Narrow factional way of running the party.

The only thing I’ve launched is a debate about how we get a plan together to defeat reform.

He says Labour activists want more to take to the doorstep.

The right have a better offering for voters at the moment.

The government has done good things but hasn’t come together in a narrative.

Burnham insists he’s having a low-key conference and is avoiding making any waves.

Our comment editor Sebastian Murphy analyses Rachel Reeves’s conference speech – and asks what lies behind her robotic delivery.

I’m seated at a venue in the Liverpool docks awaiting a major interview by Andy Burnham. Could make some major waves if he doubles down on his attacks on Starmer.

Stay tuned.

Our senior political correspondent Christian Calgie was in the room for Rachel Reeves’s speech and says she was obsessed with one word.

Read his verdict here.

Merseyside Police have said there was “no police involvement” after a pro-Palestine heckler interrupted Rachel Reeves’ Labour conference speech.

He was removed from the hall and the incident was dealt with by internal security staff, the force said.

Rachel Reeves’s speech has been branded “hopelessly out of touch” by campaigners.

John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Rachel Reeves wanted her speech to sound bold and bullish, but it came across as hollow, hopelessly out of touch, and ignorant of the damage her policies are causing for small businesses, family farmers and ordinary taxpayers alike.

“Under her watch, the economy is stuck in a doom loop. Reeves dresses this up as stability, but in reality she is overseeing a system that is punishing work, investment and aspiration while pouring money into a bloated state that delivers less and less.

“The Chancellor must rule out further tax hikes, end her reckless borrowing binge, and set out a serious plan to get spending under control. Anything less will condemn Britain to stay on the path of stagnation and long-term decline.”

Palestine Youth Movement and London for a Free Palestine have claimed responsibility after a pro-Palestine heckler interrupted Rachel Reeves’s Labour conference speech.

According to the two groups, the activist, named “Sam P” stood up with a large Palestinian flag and said: “Why is Britain still arming Israel?”

In a statement issued by the protest groups following the disruption, the activist said: “It’s unbearable to watch this British-backed genocide unfolding on our screens while Labour carries on with business as usual.

“We should do whatever we can to push for an end to the atrocities.”

Rachel Reeves admitted the last year had “brought its fair share of challenges for our party and our country” and warned “they won’t be the last”.

The Chancellor told Labour’s party conference: “This year has brought its fair share of challenges for our party and our country.

“They won’t be the last. We’ve turned our backs on the path of decline, and we’ve chosen investment, but there is further to go.

“So yes, I’m proud that under our watch, Britain has been the fastest growing economy in the G7, but is there more to do if we want prosperity in every part of Britain? Absolutely.”

Rachel Reeves hit out at Nigel Farage as she claimed Reform UK’s agenda is the “single greatest threat” to livelihoods.

She told Labour’s annual conference: “The single greatest threat to our way of life and to the living standards of working people is the agenda of Nigel Farage and the Reform party.

“Whatever falsehoods they push, whatever easy answers they peddle, however willing they are to tear communities and families apart, they are not on the side of working people.”

“This is a fight that we must win, and it is a fight that we will win,” she added.

Rachel Reeves told Labour’s annual conference: “I will make my choices at that Budget. They will be choices to take our country forward.

“And whatever tests come our way, whatever tests come my way, I make this commitment to you: I will take no risks with the trust placed in us by the British people.”

Rachel Reeves hinted at further tax hikes in the upcoming Budget as she warned of “harsh global headwinds”.

The Chancellor told Labour’s conference: “In the months ahead, we will face further tests, with the choices to come made all the harder by harsh global headwinds and the long-term damage done to our economy, which is becoming ever clearer.

“Our first year in power was about fixing the foundations. Our second must be about building a renewed economy for a renewed Britain: A renewed economy that works for working people and rewards their contribution.

“A renewed economy, where we reject austerity and support public services.

“A renewed economy that supports investment, that gets inflation and borrowing down and where we build for growth in every part of Britain.”

There is “nothing progressive, nothing Labour” about borrowing more, and pushing up the cost of servicing the nation’s debts, says Rachel Reeves.

She doesn’t name anyone but this is a sly dig at Andy Burnham, a Labour politician who has suggested the Chancellor should take a different tack and be willing to bend her “fiscal rules” to spend a bit more rather than allowing the bond markets to dictate economic policy.

Rachel Reeves said she “fundamentally” rejects the Conservative and Reform UK position that the economy is broken.

The Chancellor told Labour’s conference: “The Conservatives and Reform they want you to believe that our economy is broken, that our best days lie behind us, the decline is inevitable.

“I fundamentally reject that. It’s not the country I see around me, not the future that I believe in.

“I know that things are still difficult, bills are too high, getting ahead can feel tough, and there are still too many obstacles in the way for businesses.

“And so, our central economic objective is to change that. Growth to improve living standards is a challenge, and investment is a solution.

“By overhauling our planning system, reforming our pension system, launching Britain’s very first national wealth fund and a modern industrial strategy, and signing new trade deals to back our manufacturers and our exporters with India, with the United States and with our closest neighbours and allies in Europe.”

Rachel Reeves repeated her criticism of the Conservatives over the state of the public finances.

The Chancellor said: “They made Britain poorer, they made working people poorer and they left our public finances in disarray.

“The single biggest factor underlying Britain’s public finances and the cost-of-living is their 14 year failure of economic growth.

“If the UK economy had grown at just the average of other advanced economies in those 14 years our economy today would be £140bn bigger. That’s almost £5,000 for every family in the Uk.

“Our economic renewal will rest on stability to keep taxes, inflation and interest rates as low as possible, economic reform to unlock the contribution of businesses and working people, and investment in every single part of Britain.”

Rachel Reeves defended Labour’s approach on Palestine after the interruption to her speech.

The Chancellor said: “We understand your cause and we are recognising a Palestinian state.

“But we are now a party in Government, not a party of protest.

“And I’m proud to stand here as your Chancellor, the Chancellor that has increased the minimum wage, the Chancellor that is introducing free breakfast clubs and free school meals, a Chancellor has overseen five cuts to interest rates.

“That’s the difference we make, and that is the difference we make in power, not through protest.

“Our party has changed, and that is why I am standing here, proud to be your Chancellor of the Exchequer.”

She received applause from the audience in the conference hall.

Rachel Reeves has been interrupted by a pro-Palestine protester during her keynote speech to Labour’s conference.

The man held up a flag with red white and green colours and shouted about the “mass starvation of Palestinians”.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves pledged to deliver an approach of “secureonomics” in her Labour conference speech.

She said: “I promised you we would run the economy differently. No longer would we turn a blind eye to where things are made and who makes them, or shrug our shoulders when the national interest is on the line, because a strong economy must rest on strong foundations.

“I call that approach securonomics.”

Ms Reeves also said: “The Tories wouldn’t invest when they were in power, the Tories now oppose that choice from opposition.

“So conference, don’t ever let anyone tell you that there’s no difference between a Labour Government and a Conservative government.”

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is giving her speech to Labour’s conference in Liverpool.

One of the cardinal rules of politics used to be that you avoid mentioning your opponent. But Labour is grasping every opportunity to talk about Nigel Farage’s party, handing it millions of pounds in free publicity. Why are they doing this when (see below) more Labour voters are going to the Greens and Liberal Democrats?

There’s are at least four main reasons.

First, they really are concerned at the double-digit lead over Labour that Mr Farage and his comrades have built and sustainted. If this continues for four years Labour is doomed.

Second, competing with the Greens and Lib Dems would doubling down on net zero, going even further on Gaza, and risking alienating those Labour voters tempted by Reform.

And third, every attack on Nigel Farage instead of Kemi Badenoch heighens the sense that Reform UK is the real opposition now. This makes it even harder for the Tories to be restored as a potential party of government.

Lastly, presenting Reform as a clear and present danger to so much that diehard Labour activists hold dear will encourage some to think this is not the time to topple their leader and expose their own splits. Labour strategists will hope attacking Reform will make grasroots members and MPs worry about what Mr Farage would do to the UK instead of seething in frustration about their own party’s mistakes.

Sir John Curtice warned Sir Keir Starmer that focusing on Reform UK is a “mistake” for Labour.

The polling guru said that Nigel Farage’s insurgent party is the “principal threat” at the next election but is “far from the only threat”.

Speaking at a fringe event at Labour’s conference in Liverpool, Sir John said: “It is a mistake to believe that this party’s only problem is Reform. It isn’t.

“Actually, you are losing more support to the Liberal Democrats and the Greens collectively, much more support, than you are to Reform.”

In a bleak assessment of Labour’s first year in power, Sir John said the party had suffered “the worst ever fall in support for a newly elected government”, having entered power on the lowest share of the vote for a winning party and facing a “deeply unhappy” electorate.

Asked whether there was any hope that Labour could turn it around, he replied: “The honest answer to that is no.”

The latest polling from More In Commons shows 38% of Britons would feel more positively about the Labour government if Keir Starmer was replaced but half (49 per cent) say it “would make no difference”… and 13% say it “would make them feel more negatively toward the government”.

While in a head-to-head, 27% would choose Andy Burnham, 20% would pick Keir Starmer. But the majority (53%) say they “don’t know”.

It doesn’t look as if the country sees Mr Burnham as the answer to Britain’s woes.

John Healey has launched an attack on rival parties the SNP, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK as he declared Labour “the party of Britain’s defence”.

Speaking in Liverpool, the Defence Secretary said: “You know, conference, who won’t back defence jobs? The Scottish nationalists.

“They refused to fund a new advanced welding centre in Glasgow, so I can announce today that the Labour Government now will step in and provide the funding needed – they won’t, we will.

“And what of the other parties? Are they any better on defence?

“The Tories – they left our armed forces hollowed out and underfunded.

“The Lib Dems – they cut the size of the British Army to its smallest since Napoleon.

“And Reform – they praise (Russian president Vladimir) Putin and they put down Nato. Conference, we are the party that created Nato in that great (Clement) Attlee government after the war.

“Now, we’re the party growing jobs and growing the army, the party facing down Russia and strengthening Nato. Conference, Labour is again the party of Britain’s defence.”

Labour MP and former pollster Chris Curtis was asked about Keir Starmer’s abysmal approval rating on GB News.

The Milton Keynes MP began saying: “Look, polls move up and they move down”

GB News’ Andrew Pierce jumped in: “No, his only move down”

Yvette Cooper is determined to stop the UK and English flags becoming icons of the Right.

The Foreign Secretary wrapped up her speech with a celebration of foreign aid and internationalism while celebrating the flags.

Labour is scrambling to fashion a progressive patriotism which will strike a chord with voters tempted by Reform UK.

She said: “Ask those overseas what it means to them when they see the Union Jack or the St George’s Cross…

“A flag on the side of an army truck that has meant the difference between life and death for people facing massacre in Sierra Leone or Kosovo. A flag on the side of a crate that has brought vaccines and medicine, food and water to those in desperate need…

“And if anyone doesn’t believe that, think back six years to when the England men’s football team played a qualifying match in Kosovo, and the players lined up for the national anthems. As God Save The Queen began to play, every Kosovan fan in the stadium held up a St George’s Flag, and amid them all a banner, which read: ‘You gave us hope for freedom.'”

Defence Secretary John Healey has told Russian President Vladimir Putin to “stop the killing, start the talks”.

He received a standing ovation at the Labour conference when he said: “Our message to Moscow from Liverpool today is this: ‘President Putin, you will not win. ‘Stop the killing, start the talks, agree a peace’.

“We will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”

Left-wing activist group Hope Not Hate has accused Labour of “literally running after Reform” and called on the party to “stand on our values”.

Nick Lowles added that the PM’s infamous “island of strangers” speech “lost Labour more voters than it won”

Kemi Badenoch was rallying activists at the weekend with a mass email, saying that just as they had forced Labour to u-turn on grooming gangs and winter fuel payment, now they would do the same on Digital ID.

Andrew RT Davies, a former leader of the Welsh Conservatives and a tub-thumper par excellence, is the latest to condemn Labour’s plan, saying: “Anybody who values their liberties will be deeply worried about the planned introduction of digital IDs.

“While it is being presented as a harmless efficiency measure, this new scheme is setting a scary precedent.

“This government cannot be trusted not to abuse this scheme, nor to protect people’s data from foreign hackers.

“These cards are a threat to liberties in the UK and must be scrapped.”

Yvette Cooper has warned of a choice between Labour and a “chaotic right-wing ideology” at the next general election.

In her speech to Labour’s conference, the Foreign Secretary said: “There is a choice – between a Labour foreign policy rooted in our belief that strength at home depends on our partnerships abroad and whatever chaotic right-wing ideology we end up facing at the next election, with politicians who are happy for us to surrender our national interests or slide into isolation.”

Ms Cooper later continued: “While we are strengthening the Nato alliance, they trot out Russian propaganda claiming Nato caused the war.

“And while we opened our hearts and our homes to Ukrainian children, their policy is to turn them away.

“While we do new trade deals underpinned by international law, they want to rip up those rules and lose the jobs and investment we need.

“And while we work together to renew Britain, they tour the world seeking every opportunity to run our country down.”

The cost of living crisis isn’t over for families across the country – and Labour is coming under intense pressure from the Left to tackle this. Many activists will be hugely disappointed if they go home with a concrete commitment to axe the two-child benefit cap.

The highly influential Joseph Rowntree Foundation states: “Without action, couples with children will see their disposable income fall by £750 on average by the end of this parliament, while lone parents will see a drop of £780, following falls in average incomes for both groups over the last Parliament.”

This comes at the same time as debate rages about where the Chancellor will hike taxes to fill a multi-billion black hole in the public finances.

But Katie Schmuecker of the JRF says: “Children growing up in poverty is neither acceptable nor inevitable. The government can lift the two-child limit and improve the safety net within Universal Credit and doing so would make a substantial difference to both the child poverty numbers and the living standards of families around the UK.”

The idea that migrants could be required to volunteer before getting Indefinite Leave to Remain is already stirring controversy.

Immigration lawyer Ashley Stothard, Immigration Lawyer of Freeths has fired an early warning shot, saying it “feels exploitative”.

She said: “The devil is in the detail, but at first glance, the proposal to make volunteering a condition for applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain feels exploitative.

“While community engagement is a positive goal, tying unpaid labour to immigration status risks undermining the principle of fair and voluntary contribution.

“It’s important to remember that many of the other conditions mentioned – such as having a clean criminal record, not claiming benefits, and demonstrating English language proficiency – are already standard requirements for most ILR applicants.

“What’s new here is the suggestion of mandatory volunteering, which raises serious ethical questions.”

Police arrested 66 people on suspicion of showing support for a proscribed terrorism organisation during a protest outside the Labour party conference yesterday.

Around 100 people gathered near The Wheel Of Liverpool in the city centre holding signs reading: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action,” protest group Defend Our Juries said.

Merseyside Police said some of the people in attendance displayed material in support of Palestine Action.

Palestine Action was banned as a terror organisation in July after the group claimed responsibility for an action in which two Voyager planes were damaged at RAF Brize Norton the previous month.

Two people were later de-arrested, the force said.

The 64 people who were arrested on suspicion of the terrorism offence were aged between 21 and 83 years.

They were taken into police custody and have now been released on bail.

Yvette Cooper has said “statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people”.

Speaking at Labour’s party conference in Liverpool, the Foreign Secretary said: “For many decades, the UK has pledged support for a two-state solution in the Middle East, but only recognised one of those states – until now.

“And seven days ago, I stood in the great chamber of the United Nations in New York, beneath the UN symbol of peace, to confirm the historic decision of the United Kingdom to recognise the state of Palestine.”

Ms Cooper later added: “Recognition is the embodiment of our passionate belief that the only path – the only path – to security and lasting peace for Israelis and Palestinians alike is two states living side by side.

“But let there be no doubt, there can and will be no role for Hamas terrorists in any future governance of Palestine.”

The minister said that the “intolerable suffering must end for children facing starvation while Israeli forces block food at the border, for the hostages and their families in anguish”.

The shadow home secretary has accused the Prime Minister of “smearing people as racist” who want borders better controlled.

“Even yesterday, Keir Starmer was smearing people as racist who wanted to get control of our borders – that tells you a lot about the way Keir Starmer’s mind works”, Chris Philp told Sky News.

Asked if he agrees with Sir Keir’s claim that Reform UK’s immigration policy – including its proposal to scrap indefinite leave to remain – is racist, Mr Philp said: “No, it’s not racist, it’s not racist to want to control our borders – it’s not racist to want to make sure only people who are making a contribution can stay here, it’s completely wrong, completely wrong, for Keir Starmer to use that smear.”

“And in the past, Keir Starmer wrote a book, or an article, when he was a human rights lawyer, when he said that all immigration law had racist overtones or undertones.”

Labour activists are to hold a vote on the conflict in Gaza today.

They are expected to choose between two motions. The main difference is that one says the conflict in Gaza is a genocide while the other says there is a risk of genocide.

The Liberal Democrats have accused Reeves of planning a £10.4 billion stealth tax grab.

It would come if Reeves failed to raise income tax and national insurance thresholds in line with wage inflation, dragging more Britons into paying the higher bands.

The party’s Treasury spokesman Daisy Cooper said the Chancellor would be “copying the mistakes of the Conservatives and Rishi Sunak’s endless stealth taxes and would drag more people on low incomes into paying income tax for the first time.

“Instead of continuing the cash grab, she should stick to her word and rule out extending the stealth taxes ahead of the budget.”

Rachel Reeves has told Bloomber she won’t raise income tax, NI or VAT at the Budget this November.

It comes after Keir Starmer was viewed to have not ruled out raising VAT yesterday.

The Chancellor told the news agency that she is still committed to the manifesto on the big three and corporation tax as well, also ruling out a wealth tax

The Chancellor Rachel Reeves is still out and about enjoying her morning media round.

Conference-goers were crowding around her giving this interview to Bloomberg TV, just to add to her nerves.

These are the times for the key speeches today:

10.05am – Yvette Cooper

10.50am – John Healey

Midday – Rachel Reeves

2.50pm – David Lammy

3.30pm – Shabana Mahmood

3.45pm – Liz Kendall

Rachel Reeves said she was “determined not to increase those key taxes that working people pay” and that the Labour manifesto “stands”, amid questions about whether she would raise VAT.

Asked whether she would raise VAT, the Chancellor told ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “The manifesto stands and it stands for a reason that working people bore the brunt of the economic mismanagement of the last government and the cost-of-living challenges are still people’s number one biggest concern.

“That’s why I’m determined to make working people better off and why I’m determined not to increase those key taxes that working people pay, and that’s why we made those commitments in the manifesto, and that’s why we stand by them.”

Asked to rule out an increase to VAT, she said: “The manifesto stands and it stands for a reason.”

She repeatedly would not explicitly rule out raising VAT, saying she did not want to go through the manifesto “line by line” before the budget and that “as soon as you answer one question you’ll move on to the next one”.

The Chancellor has hit out at ongoing speculation around the upcoming Budget.

Rachel Reeves said people who claim to have insight on the contents of her Budget are “talking rubbish”. She branded some predictions as “very irresponsible”.

Ms Reeves was pressed by BBC Radio 4 on whether changes could affect people with shares, pensions or property.

She said: “There are a lot of people who claim to know what is going to be in my Budget. They don’t. A lot of them are talking rubbish, and frankly a lot of it is very irresponsible.

“People were told last year that I was going to do this, I was going to do that, and people made decisions with their money, that were often irreversible decisions, and I would urge people to wait until that Budget and not listen to people who claim to know what is in my Budget.”

Child poverty will reduce under Labour, Rachel Reeves has said, but the Government needs to ensure the numbers “add up” over whether to lift the two-child benefit cap.

The Chancellor told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “There’s absolutely more to do to make working people better off, to lift people out of poverty, to ensure that our businesses can trade around the world.”

She was asked directly about dropping the current two-child limit on benefit payments. She said: “That’s a decision for the Budget. No-one needs to tell me about child poverty, I came into this party because I desperately care about children and their life chances.

“It’s why we’ve done free school meals, it’s why we’ve done breakfast clubs, it’s why we’ve increased the national living wage, and the national minimum wage, so I’m that Chancellor that cares about child poverty.

“We will reduce child poverty, but we’ve also got to make sure the numbers add up, and people can trust me to ensure that that always happens.”

Zia Yusuf clashed with a BBC Breakfast presenter after Sir Keir Starmer branded a Reform UK immigration policy as “racist”. Reform’s head of policy argued that the Prime Minister was smearing supporters of the insurgent party’s plan to scrap indefinite leave to remain for migrants.

But BBC Breakfast presenter Jon Kay highlighted that Sir Keir was “talking very clearly about the policy being immoral and racist” and “wasn’t calling people racist”.

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Rachel Reeves suggested Andy Burnham “risks going the way of Liz Truss” as she warned being Chancellor meant saying “no to good causes” to make sure “the numbers add up”.

Asked whether she agreed with the Prime Minister, who last week appeared to liken Mr Burnham’s economic agenda to that of the former Tory prime minister, she told LBC: “If he’s saying… anybody that says you can just borrow more, I do think that risks going the way of Liz Truss.

“Already one pound in every 10 the Government spends is on financing the debt that was racked up by the previous Conservative government.

“There’s nothing progressive, nothing Labour about that.

“I want to bring that debt down. I want bring that debt down I want to bring those borrowing costs down.

“That means having to make difficult decisions and having to say no. And whoever’s chancellor of the exchequer they need to be able to say no to colleagues.

“They need to be able to say no to good causes because they’ve got to make sure the numbers add up. And with me as Chancellor, they always will.”

Rachel Reeves insisted she was “genuinely loving this job” while acknowledging there had been “difficult days” as Chancellor, and conceding there was “more to do.”

Asked how she was managing the job personally, she told BBC Breakfast: “I’ve been Chancellor now for 451 days.

“There have been difficult days – some of them have been very public.

“But I wouldn’t swap them for any of the 5,000 days I spent in Opposition before that, because every one of those 451 days has been an opportunity to change our country for the better.”

She added: “Has it been easy? No. I didn’t go into this thinking it was going to be easy.

“I’m really proud of what we’ve done. I’m the first to admit there’s more to do.

“We’re 15 months into this Government and as the first Labour chancellor in 14 years and the first female chancellor in 800 years, I am genuinely loving this job and the chance to serve, because that’s what I came into this for – just the chance to serve and make our country a bit better off.”

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp accused Labour of “playing catch-up” ahead of Shabana Mahmood’s speech today.

He said: “Months ago, we put forward amendments in parliament for tougher indefinite leave to remain rules – doubling the residency requirement for ILR to ten years, make ILR conditional on genuine contribution, blocking criminals, and barring access to benefits.

“On top of that, we will end automatic citizenship routes, impose a hard, legally binding cap on annual legal migration set by Parliament, and ensure temporary work visas are not renewed if people are unemployed or in low-paid work. Labour blocked these proposals then, and now are trotting out a watered-down copy.

“This is the same Labour government that scrapped the Rwanda deterrent and then lost control of our borders. Only the Conservatives have a detailed and deliverable plan in our Deportation Bill. That is how you restore control, not more gimmicks.”

Migrants who want to remain in the UK will have to learn English to a high standard, have a clean criminal record and volunteer in their community, the Home Secretary will say.

In her Labour Party conference speech later today, Shabana Mahmood is expected to set out a series of conditions for those seeking indefinite leave to remain status.

Asylum seekers will also need to be working, paying national insurance and not be claiming benefits, under the proposed changes.

Rachel Reeves has backed the Prime Minister’s view that Reform UK’s policy of scrapping indefinite leave to remain is “racist”.

The Chancellor told Times Radio: “I’m going to not play the man, I’m going to play the ball, and that policy I believe is a racist policy.

“That doesn’t mean that people that support Reform are racist, absolutely not.”

She added: “I’m going to focus on the policies rather than the individuals.

“But there are lots of people listening, and their neighbour may have been born abroad. They may be married to somebody who was born abroad, a person sitting next to them in the office might have been born abroad.

“But if they are here legally, they are working and they are contributing, I don’t think there is any case to say you’re going to deport that person.”

Rachel Reeves said Labour’s manifesto commitments “stand” on whether the Government will raise VAT at the Budget later this year, but did not explicitly rule it out.

Ahead of the election last year, Sir Keir Starmer and Ms Reeves promised not to raise taxes on “working people”. However, there is speculation the Government is considering a tax rise later this year to bring in money.

When asked directly by Times Radio whether she had any plans to increase VAT, the Chancellor said: “I am being clear. We made those commitments in the manifesto, and those manifesto commitments stand.

“We went through all of this in the general election 15 months ago where people said ‘are you going to rule this out? Are you going to do this?’

“We made those commitments in the manifesto. We were elected on those manifesto commitments, and those manifesto commitments stand because I want to make working people better off.

“Judge me on my record, because last year at the budget people said, ‘Oh you’re not going to be able to honour your manifesto commitments’, well we did increase taxes in the budget last year, but without hitting the payslips of ordinary working people.”

Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said: “Rachel Reeves says she wants to abolish youth unemployment – yet in her very first Budget, she introduced a £25 billion Jobs Tax that made it more expensive for businesses to hire, especially young people.

“That’s the contradiction at the heart of Labour’s plan: they talk about opportunity, but their policies kill jobs. Since Labour came to power, unemployment is up. Business confidence is down. And now Reeves is trying to fix a problem she created – while pointing the finger of blame, as she so often does, at everyone else.

“You don’t get more young people into work by punishing the very businesses that hire them. The answer isn’t more taxpayer-funded schemes – it’s growth, lower taxes, and a pro-jobs economy.”

Long-term unemployed youths will be guaranteed paid work and could face being stripped of benefits if they refuse to take it up, Rachel Reeves will announce.

In her Labour conference speech, the Chancellor will make the case for a society founded on “contribution” as she unveils plans for a “youth guarantee” aimed at driving down unemployment.

She will also set out plans to fund libraries in all English primary schools and pledge measures to support British steelmaking and shipbuilding.

And she will promise a “hit squad” of investigators will target Covid fraudsters to hit them with fines of up to 100% of the value of the money they swindled from the taxpayer.

The Chancellor is expected to use her speech in Liverpool to say that British society must be built on the principles of doing “our duty for each other” and “hard work matched by fair reward”.

A series of Cabinet ministers are set to give their speeches today including Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood.

Ms Reeves will announce that long-term unemployed youths will be guaranteed paid work and could face being stripped of benefits if they refuse to take it up.

Meanwhile, Ms Mahmood will outline a tougher stance on migrants seeking indefinite leave to remain.