Homes for veterans, Hillsborough law & national renewal - here's what was in Sir Keir's speech
Sir Keir has given his first conference speech as Prime Minister
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has set out his vision for national renewal but says "we're only just getting started"
In his first Labour Party conference speech since entering No 10, Sir Keir said “change has begun” but warned there would be difficult decisions ahead.
He told delegates in Liverpool it would be a “long-term project”.
What was in Sir Keir's party conference speech?
The Prime Minister promised that the Government would address an “injustice hiding in plain sight”, the issue of homeless veterans.
“We cannot stand by and let this happen anymore,” he said.
He listed action including reforming planning, ending the doctors’ strike, launching Great British Energy – which he confirmed would be based in Aberdeen – and a plan to nationalise the railways as an indication of his Government delivering on the promises made.
“And we’re only just getting started,” he said.
“A crackdown on knife crime. A real living wage. A modern industrial strategy. A 10-year plan for our NHS.
“Devolution to our nations, regions and cities. The biggest levelling up of workers’ rights in a generation.
“More teachers. More neighbourhood police. More operations. Rebuilding our public services.
“Change has begun.”
Here are some of the details which the Prime Minister set out in his speech in Liverpool
PM promises homes for veterans
In his speech, Sir Keir Starmer promised to “repay” homeless veterans, saying “homes will be there for heroes”.
The Prime Minister said: “There is another injustice hiding in plain sight on our streets.
“In every town and city in this country, people who were prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, who put their lives on the line to protect us all, but who will not have a safe place to sleep tonight.
“We cannot stand by and let this happen anymore. And so today, I can announce that this Government will respect that service.
“We will repay those who served us. And house all veterans in housing need.
“Homes will be there for heroes.”
Hillsborough law confirmed
Sir Keir Starmer confirmed that a Hillsborough law requiring a duty of candour on public officials would be introduced to Parliament before the next anniversary of the disaster, condemning “the countless injustices over the years suffered by working people at the hands of those who are supposed to serve them”.
The Prime Minister told the Labour conference that it was “also a law for the subpostmasters of the Horizon scandal, the victims of infected blood, Windrush, Grenfell Tower and all the countless injustices over the years suffered by working people at the hands of those who were supposed to serve them”.
“Truth and justice concealed behind closed ranks of the state, and conference, this is the meaning of clause one, because today I can confirm that the duty of candour will apply to public authorities and public servants, the Bill will include criminal sanctions and that the Hillsborough law will be introduced to Parliament before the next anniversary in April,” he said.
GB Energy will be based in Aberdeen
Confirming that GB Energy will be based in Aberdeen, the Prime Minister told the Labour Conference: “We said, GB Energy, our publicly owned national champion, the vehicle will drive forward our mission on clean energy, we said it belonged in Scotland, and it does.
“But the truth is, it could only really ever be based in one place in Scotland.
“So today, I can confirm that the future of British energy will be powered as it has been for decades, by the talent and skills of the working people in the Granite City with GB Energy based in Aberdeen.”
Prime Minister calls for ceasefire in Gaza
Sir Keir Starmer called for de-escalation between Lebanon and Israel and a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Prime Minister told the Labour Party conference: “This is a time when great forces demand a decisive government prepared to face the future. We can see that again in the Middle East today.
“So I call again for restraint and de-escalation at the border between Lebanon and Israel. Again, all parties to pull back from the brink.
“I call again for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the return of the hostages, and a recommitment to the two-state solution, a recognised Palestinian state alongside a safe and secure Israel.
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