Andy Burnham has said Labour should call out the cost of the Brexit “disaster” – as home secretary Shabana Mahmood addresses the Labour Party conference
At a fringe event to the conference this afternoon, the Greater Manchester mayor spoke about the impact of leaving the European Union four years ago, claiming “the growth is not there as it once was”.
Then talking about the autumn budget, when Labour will need to raise £30 billion, Mr Burnham said chancellor Rachel Reeves needed to rebalance a system in which he said “we overtax people’s work and we undertax wealth and assets”.
His comments come amid mounting speculation that he is plotting a leadership bid against Sir Keir Starmer, with Ms Reeves appearing to attack his economic approach in her speech to the conference earlier.
She said: “There are still those who peddle the idea that we could just abandon economic responsibility and cast off any constraints on spending. They are wrong – dangerously so.”
But at the fringe event organised by the Guardian Politics podcast live, Mr Burnham rejected the suggestion he was “hopeless” on the economy.
Meanwhile, Ms Mahmood is talking to the conference in Liverpool a day after announcing a major crackdown on immigration with tougher tests for migrants wanting to remain in the UK.
Delegates seem unconvinced by home secretary’s attempt to justify migration reforms
The Independent’s political correspondent Millie Cooke reports from Liverpool:
Shabana Mahmood has framed its fresh migration crackdown as an attempt to keep Britain as an “open, tolerant and generous country”.
After the government faced criticism for its clampdown on indefinite leave to remain, the main route for immigrants gaining British citizenship in the UK, the home secretary has attempted to justify the reforms – instead saying it is necessary to keep the fabric of the country together.
“Unless we have control of our borders, and until we can decide who comes in and who must be, we will never be the open, tolerant and generous country that I know we all believe in”, she said.
Unfortunately, the audience didn’t seem convinced.
There was applause – but it was lacklustre.
Britain is moving from patriotism towards ethno-nationalism, Mahmood warns
The Independent’s political correspondent Millie Cooke reports from Liverpool:
Britain is moving from patriotism towards ethno-nationalism, the home secretary has warned in her main stage address to the Labour conference.
Shabana Mahmood warned that the broad vision of who we are as an “open, tolerant, generous country” is “increasingly disputed”.
“Patriotism a force for good. But it is turning into something smaller, something more like ethno-nationalism”, she said.”It struggles to accept that someone who looks like me and has a faith like me can choose English or British. There are some who we will never be able to persuade, a growing number, who are on a path from patriotism towards ethno-nationalism.
“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 little England”.
Shabana Mahmood takes to the main stage
The home secretary has stepped up to speak on the main stage at the Labour Party conference.
Her speech comes amid increasing pressure to tackle levels of illegal migration.
Shabana Mahmood began by saying it was an “honour” to be addressing conference as a Labour home secretary.
‘Not in our name!’ Lammy takes aim at Farage over ‘racist’ migration plan
The Independent’s political correspondent Millie Cooke reports from Liverpool:
David Lammy has launched a powerful intervention on Nigel Farage’s plan to abolish indefinite leave to remain.
“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 or Indian or Caribbean neighbours who already have indefinite leave to remain what it is – it is racist.
“I say not in our culture, not in our name, not in our time”, he said in his main stage address to the Labour Party conference.
Home secretary up next
The home secretary Shabana Mahmood is up next on the main stage.
It comes amid a increasing pressure on her department on illegal immigration.
We will bring you the latest updates from her speech here.
Full story: Rachel Reeves warns of looming ‘harsh headwinds’ as she fails to dispel fears over major tax rises
David Lammy takes to the main stage
David Lammy has been speaking on the main stage at the Labour Party conference.
He began with highlighting the government’s recognition of Palestine, and went on to criticise Robert Jenrick and Nigel Farage.
“Robert, patriotism isn’t smearing our independent judiciary from a pub on X,” he said.
“It’s standing up for the rule of law, Magna Carta, Habeas Corpus. The rule of law they are Britain’s gifts to the world.
“The other person who doesn’t get it is Nigel Farage. 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.”
“I say not in our country. Not in our name. Not in our time.”
Burnham says ‘not now’ on digital ID
Andy Burnham has expressed his opposition to the introduction of mandatory digital ID right now.
Asked in a quickfire round at a fringe event about his opinion on them, he said: “Not now.”
Speculation on leadership ambitions ‘overwritten’, Burnham says
Andy Burnham suggested speculation about his ambitions had partly stemmed from “overwritten” and “inaccurate” reporting, while refusing to say whether he had spoken to MPs about the prospect of of a leadership bid.
The Greater Manchester Mayor said there were “plenty of conversations I have with MPs all the time and I don’t think it was quite as the headline suggested”.
He insisted it was “inaccurate” to say he had suggested he would borrow £40 billion more.
Mr Burnham told an event hosted by the Guardian Politics podcast live: “There’s no ability for me to launch… I’m not going to go and say every conversation I have with every MP.
“I can’t launch a leadership campaign, I’m not in parliament, so that is the bottom line.”
Andy Burnham says he would have to be ‘wrenched’ out of Manchester- but that he can’t predict the future
Our Whitehall Editor Kate Devlin reports from Liverpool:
The man at the centre of days of speculation about his future failed to dampen speculation about a tilt at No 10, despite saying he would have to be “wrenched” out of Manchester.
“I can’t predict the future,” he said when he was asked at a Labour conference fringe.
He said he was “committed” to his job as mayor of Greater Manchester.
He said: “You would have to wrench me out of the place, I’m so committed to what we are doing there”.
But it was his comment about being unable to predict the future that will be noticed by the Labour leadership.
He also suggested if he was PM he would stick to “fiscal rules’, just not the same ones as Rachel Reeves.
“Of course you have discipline”, he said, but he called for a more “long term approach”.
