Burnham claims ‘climate of fear’ in Labour and refuses to pledge loyalty to Starmer: Labour conference live

Rachel Reeves is setting out Labour’s plans to ensure young people who can work take up offers of employment, do.

The chancellor has said those who have been on universal credit for 18 months, who do not re-enter the education system or take up an apprenticeship, will be offered guaranteed paid work.

She admitted no businesses have signed up to provide the guaranteed jobs, because “we have not got to that stage yet”.

But she said businesses would be signed up between today’s announcement and her Budget in November. Those who do not accept the guaranteed paid work face being stripped of their benefit payments under Labour’s plans.

Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese has hailed the UK–Australia relationship as he vowed to “defend democracy itself” alongside “my mate”, Sir Keir Starmer.

The two leaders embraced on stage in Liverpool at the UK Labour Party conference yesterday.

“We all know this is a time when trust in governments and institutions is under challenge,” Mr Albanese said.

He said he shared a “determination” with the British prime minister and an “absolute resolve to stand together and defend democracy itself”.

“Tearing things down is easy but it doesn’t leave you with anything. The low politics of fear and resentment are easy but they only divide the country, they don’t advance it,” he said.

Labour is taking the fight to Trumpian critics of diversity and equality, with the tech secretary vowing to “smash the glass ceilings” holding women and people of colour in the tech industry back.

With Reform UK threatening to sack diversity officers in councils across the country, Liz Kendall is taking the fight to Nigel Farage and ramping up the government’s efforts to boost representation.

On current trends, it would take 283 years for women to make up an equal share of the tech workforce, according to the BCS Chartered Institute for IT.

Archie Mitchell has more.

Protesters gathered outside the Labour Party conference in Liverpool yesterday to oppose plans for a new national digital ID card.

Demonstrators carried banners reading “No to digital ID”, as they warned the scheme could pave the way for surveillance and the exclusion of vulnerable groups. The protest remained peaceful under police watch.

The protest comes days after Sir Keir Starmer unveiled proposals for a new “BritCard” digital ID system.

More here.

Andy Burnham hit out at a “climate of fear” in Labour as he called for a “debate on our direction” on the first day of the party’s conference in Liverpool.

The Greater Manchester mayor was greeted with multiple rounds of applause as he criticised the Labour leadership’s handling of dissent, attacking a situation where party members were “suspended for liking a tweet by another political party” or “a Member of Parliament loses the whip for trying to protect disability benefits”.

He said: “One thing I am worried about, and I think we do need to debate at this conference in my view, is how can you have an open debate about all of those things if there’s too much of a climate of fear within our party and the way the party is being run.”

More here.

Energy minister Ed Miliband has said it is “possible” the government should come off X, because Elon Musk is a “dangerous man”.

Speaking at a fringe event at the Labour conference, Mr Miliband said: “It’s not just that [Nigel] Farage wants less workers’ rights and all those things. Even though he poses as something else, he is now part of a global network of the far right, a global network of billionaires like Elon Musk who want to take away people’s rights, take away people’s freedoms, and we need to have that argument.”

Mr Miliband said of Musk: “He called for the overthrow of our government. He incited violence on our streets. His platform, X, promotes disinformation. He’s a dangerous person.”

Asked if that meant the government should leave X, he said: “It’s possible.”

Mr Musk appeared via video link at a far-right rally in London organised by convicted criminal Tommy Robinson, where he called for a “change of government”. He said: “Whether you choose violence or not, violence is coming to you. You either fight back or you die.”

With Andy Burnham and left-wing Labour rebels threatening to oust him on one side and Nigel Farage taking Labour voters away on the other, Keir Starmer arrives in Liverpool as a man under siege, writes political editor David Maddox.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall is expected to announce cyberflashing as a priority offence under the Online Safety Act on Monday.

Ms Kendall will order firms to detect and remove unsolicited explicit images being sent online, in her speech at the Labour conference on Monday.

Firms that fail to comply could be fined up to 10 per cent of qualifying global revenue and see their services blocked across the UK.

The new policy plans to place extra duties on firms to protect users from seeing unsolicited nude images or videos.

She will say: “Keeping children safe online is non-negotiable… So platforms will be required – by law – to detect and remove this material. Because what is illegal offline, must be illegal online.”

Cyberflashing became a criminal offence in England and Wales in January 2024.

The UK government is to fund a skills centre to support shipbuilding in Scotland, with defence secretary John Healey accusing SNP ministers of failing to back the sector.

Mr Healey will use his speech to the Labour conference in Liverpool today to confirm £2.5m is being made available for the specialist welding skills centre on the Clyde in Glasgow.

The UK government has worked with Scottish Labour and Rolls-Royce to save the £11m Welding Development Facility.

It is hoped the centre will train the next generation of shipbuilders, with the funding coming after the UK government signed a £10 billion deal which will see Type 26 frigates for Norway built on the Clyde.

The UK government stepped in amid Labour concerns that the SNP’s “anti-defence stance” was putting the creation of the welding skills centre in jeopardy.

Mr Healey said: “Labour is proud of Scotland’s maritime heritage, and we are taking action to ensure its success long into the future.”Where the SNP won’t back Scottish industry, young people or our national security, Labour will step in.

“With our record defence investment, and our record export deals, Labour is making Scotland a shipbuilding superpower once again.

“We’ll deliver good, well-paid jobs and opportunities across the Clyde, Rosyth, Methil and beyond.”

Justice Secretary David Lammy will promise “smarter justice” as he announces new plans to expand sentences aimed at tackling the root causes of crime at Labour’s annual conference on Monday.

The expansion of “intensive supervision courts” will see criminals with a history of repeated short sentences, substance abuse, or other complex needs brought back before the same judge to monitor their progress.

The initiative aims to in addressing the causes of criminal offending.