#labour

#labour

Keir Starmer saved his best for the fragile circumstances of a difficult Labour conference. It may not yet be enough to save him. All the same, this was by some way Starmer's most effective and certainly his most interesting conference speech since becoming Labour leader five years ago. Not a particularly high bar, it must be admitted, since Starmer is no great orator but at least the bar is one that he cleared. In the dire situation now facing Labour, this mattered a lot.

"Introducing VAT on private health provision could provide vital funding for the NHS and social care," Kinnock said. "Ending the VAT exemption to generate much-needed revenue is a reasonable and widely-supported step."

"No government in modern history has done more damage to rural Britain than Labour is right now," Anderson said. "Farms are closing at twice the rate new ones are opening."

Polling indicates that only 3% of respondents support the government's plan to change the House of Lords by removing hereditary peers. Instead, 56% believe there should be limits on prime ministerial appointments for life.

Labour's victory in the Holyrood byelection is a comfort for the UK government, but doesn't guarantee a strategic breakthrough, as challenges remain ahead.

Labour's rail minister, Lord Hendy, referred himself to police after being seen texting while driving a vintage double-decker bus during a charity event, prompting an investigation.