23/09/2013 Today at Conference

Good evening, and welcome to the highlights of the Labour Party

conference. The weather in Brighton has been bright and sunny, but

hanging over this conference is a cloud in the shape of a former party

press officer called Damian McBride. We will hear from two

former Labour spin this, Alastair Campbell and Charlie Whelan. At

walls was in the spotlight, announcing an increase in free

childcare for working families. He also cast doubt on a future Labour

up and support for the HS2 High Speed Rail project. Izzard all is

right for the job? We asked delegates who they think should be

the shadow chancellor? A Dutch auction is underway between

the political parties over who has the best ideas to help people with

the cost of living. Last week the Lib Dems promised free school meals

for five to seven-year-olds, and today the shadow chancellor, Ed

Balls, promised more free childcare for working parents. But more

importantly, he cast doubt over a future Labour government support

over the HS2 High Speed Rail project. That came after Ed Balls

cracked a joke about David Cameron's size, that was perhaps the

wrong side. Didn't you feel sorry for our Prime Minister this summer?

Didn't you? Back in August, on the beach, changing into his swimming

trunks behind the Mickey Mouse towel, captured on the camera,

unflattering pictures spread across the country. I have been there, I

know what it is like. When Yvette Cooper saw the pictures she said,

for a 46-year-old man, David Cameron looked rather slim! Slim! Who can

she have been comparing him to? I just thought for our Prime

Minister, it was a surprisingly small towel! But, let us all agree,

after the last three years, the sooner David Cameron throws in the

towel, the better. Conference, we support investment in

better transport links for the future. We continue to back the idea

of a new north to South rail link. But under this government, the

high-speed project has been mismanaged and the costs have shot

up to £50 billion. David Cameron and George Osborne have made clear they

will go full steam ahead with this project, no matter how much the cost

spirals. They seem willing to put their own pride and value above best

value for the taxpayer. Maria Eagle and I are clear, we will not take

this irresponsible approach. In tough times, when there is less

money around and a big deficit to get down, there will be no blank

cheque from me as a Labour Chancellor for this project, or any

other project. The question is, not just whether a new high-speed line

is a good idea or a bad idea, but whether it is the best way to spend

£50 billion for the future of our country. In tough times, it is even

more important that all our policies and commitments are properly costed

and funded. The British people want to know if the sums add up. We will

go one step further and ask the independent Office for Budget

Responsibility, the watchdog set up by this government, two in deep

tendon Lee ordered the costings of every single independent spending

and tax measure in labour's manifesto at the next election. It

is the first time any political party has ever said it wants this

kind of independent audit. It is a radical change from what has gone

kind of independent audit. It is a before, but it is the right thing to

do to help restore trust in politics, and that is why we are

going to do it. Conference, you know we need economic responsibility. We

cannot write all the details of our first budget to date when we don't

know the state of the economy and how bad the public finances are

going to be we will inherit. But after three wasted years of Tory

failure, people are asking what will Labour do differently? With 19

months ago to the election, this week, today, tomorrow and the coming

days is the right time to set out labour's alternative. Conference,

when people get into work, they should always be better off, it

should always pay more to be in work than on benefits. We must do more to

make work pay. The National minimum wage is a Labour achievement. It was

opposed by the Tories every step of the way. Even now, some

conservatives say the minimum wage should be suspended and its value

has fallen by 5% in real terms since 2010. We must fight to protect the

national wage, increasing the fines who exploit workers, strengthening

the National minimum wage, restoring its value, catching up the ground

the National minimum wage, restoring lost over the last three years. And

encouraging employers to go further and paid a living wage. -- pay the

living wage. Conference, to move Labour on from the past, put Labour

where it should always be on the side of working people, we will

introduce a new starting rate of tax, a tax cut that 25 million,

hard-working people on middle and lower incomes.

We will pay for it by introducing a mansion tax on properties worth over

£2 million... Introduced in a fairway, so that foreign investors

who buy property in London to make a profit will finally make a proper

who buy property in London to make a tax contribution to our country. But

for many families, high childcare tax contribution to our country. But

costs are a real problem and can mean it does not even add up to go

to work. Childcare is a vital part of our economic infrastructure. That

alongside family support and flexible working, should have

parents the choice to stay at home with their children when they are

very small and balance work and family as they grow older. To make

work pay for families, we must act it. Stephen Twigg set out yesterday

how we will guarantee childcare available for all primary school

children from 8am to 6pm. And today, I want to go further, because we

need to do more for families with nursery age children also.

Conference, here is how we can. After the financial crisis, it is

right the banks make a greater contribution. In the last financial

year the banks made a staggering £2.7 billion less in overall tax

made in 2010. Over the last two years the government angler the

rated 1.6 billion less even than they said it would. At a time when

re-sources are tight and families are under pressure, that is not

right and we will act. The next Labour government will increase the

bank levy rate to raise an extra £800 million. We will use the money

for families were all parents want to work and who are in work to

increase free childcare for three and four-year-olds from 15 hours to

25 hours. The parents in work, free childcare

for three and four-year-olds from 15 to 25 hours a week, for the first

time parents able to work part-time without having to worry about the

cost of childcare. That is what we mean by making work pay. That is

what we mean by attacking the cost of living crisis. It is a radical

con -- transformation of childcare in our country. Let us not be the

Labour generation that flinched in the face of hardship. Let us show we

will not duck the great challenges we are going to face on spending and

the deficit. Let us build an economy that works for all working families

in every part of our country. In the coming weeks and months, when people

ask what would a Labour government do, let's go out and tell them dash

jobs for young people guaranteed. Expanding free childcare, a British

investment bank, infrastructure delivered, green and thrust meant a

lot, tax cuts are millions, not for millionaires. Performing our banks,

the minimum wage raised, rail fares, the bedroom tax scrapped,

building the homes we need. That is what a Labour government could do.

Let's together go out there and make it happen. Thank you, conference.

That was Ed Balls big moment, but did he do enough to convince, not

just his party, but the electorate that he is capable of running the

economy, or should somebody else be in charge. Adam Fleming took his

mood box round right on. Let's find out who Labour delegates

would want in charge of shadow policy? Alistair Darling was an

underrated Chancellor, but he will not be the next Chancellor, Ed Balls

is. He gets my vote. Who would you like to see in charge of economic

policy? Ed Balls. He has got the intelligence to take it forward. Do

you think Ed Miliband should ring up Alistair Darling back? In some

capacity. I like Ed Balls but Alistair Darling has this barrier of

safety around him and I trust him. Would you rather he were shadow

chancellor? Oh dear. You are allowed to say. Yes. We are doing a survey

about you. It is about you. Are you sure I cannot tempt you with a ball.

How about your wife? It is true, Alistair Darling is modest. He won't

even vote for himself. You have gone Fred Halls, what do you think about

the admission he made about being too much of. -- Ed Balls. Hopefully

the Labour Party have moved on from that period. Ed Balls is not too

much of a bruiser? Who knows what damage he would do on the back

benches. Who would you rather hang out with?

Ed Balls. He is very hunky. I am too busy eating my Apple. It is

nearly finished. What do you want me to do? Ed Balls or Alistair Darling?

I am not playing these games. Alistair Darling did a fantastic

job, but now it is a new challenge and we need new ideas and new

proposals, Ed Balls at the moment. Would you like to add to our survey?

I didn't realise this was real. You have seen it in action. You are part

of it. I will vote for Ed Balls but I am a big fan of Alistair Darling

of it. I will vote for Ed Balls but as well. Did you hear he confessed

to cry while watching the sound of music? He is a very sensitive soul.

Do you get to see that? We work with him on all types of different levels

for stop it doesn't surprise me. We have got a massive fountain of

walls for Ed Balls. -- mountain. One of the big issues is welfare. At

the Conservative conference we will hear a lot about their plans to

clamp down on welfare spending. The Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary

the ones to abolish the housing benefit cuts -- Liam Byrne 's. He

also promised unemployment benefit would go up for older claimants.

Once upon a time they let us had the Tory party say they care, although

speeches in Easterhouse, people gave them the benefit of the doubt. We

will promised Tory party who cared about the poor, we were promised the

poor, we were promised welfare revolution, we were even promised we

were all in this together, and three years on I tell you now, the jury

is, cost of living crisis, 1 million young people out of work, long time

an appointment at a record high, disabled people living in fear,

child poverty rising, promised that started in Easterhouse has ended up

with the spectacle of a Tory minister, Michael Gove, blaming the

poor for the temerity to turn up at a feedback. He should be ashamed. --

food bank. Three years on, I tell you, this is

the verdict, these Tories have let them prejudice destroy their policy.

Just as bad as the prejudice is the incompetence. You know they say to

our is human, but if you want somebody to really screw it up, then

you send for Iain Duncan Smith. Conference, that is why we need to

fire him. Those in their 50s who have worked the most and cared the

most and save the most and serve the most, what do they get? They get

practically nothing. Let's bring back an idea from William Beveridge,

extra help for those who have paid their dues but are desperate for

extra help to work again after a lifetime working or caring it is the

least we could do. It is a modest step but I tell you, it is a big,

big so. -- signal. Like most families in this country I know from

first-hand experience that disability can affect anyone,

therefore it affects us all. Yet today, disabled people of Britain by

therefore it affects us all. Yet hate crime, atolls, and bedroom tax.

We deny them peace of mind, a job, care, and we need to be the party

that changes that. We will change the law so that hate crime against

disabled people is treated just the same as any kind of hate crime. I

say to David Cameron, ATOS is a disgrace and you should sack them

now. We say to this Prime Minister this out of touch pad minister, the

bedroom tax, you should axe it and acts it now -- by minister.

Now to Damien but ride's book, lifting the lid of years of

infighting -- McBride. It is the talk of the conference. Earlier

today Andrew Neill on the daily politics spoke to a brace of former

Labour spin. This, Alistair Campbell and Charlie Whelan. Let's hear from

Mr Whelan. What people wanted about is jobs,

living standards, NHS, minimum wage, they are not interested in

books by Damien or Alistair Campbell or anybody else which is why I never

wrote the book. I am interested though.

Most of the delegates will not recognise Damien Wright, they don't

know who he is, -- Damian McBride. The only thing the media were

talking about was him. I went into the conference area, stated

delegates, nobody mentioned him. The people are not interested, they are

interested in jobs, living standards and the NHS.

I don't think they are quite as brave as me. Did you know that he

got up to this sort of thing? As you probably well know, when I

worked for Gordon Brown in opposition and a few years at the

Treasury I never even met him, he wasn't around. He didn't come on the

scene until three years after I had left front line politics.

He was there when you were political officer for Unite.

He was indeed. Did you know he was officer for Unite.

undermining the medical careers of Labour colleagues like John Reid,

Charles Clarke? I am sure they can look after themselves. I know you

are really interested in this but if you want to carry on talking about

him, go back to Alistair Campbell who is waiting downstairs. I don't

want to talk about M and neither do the delegates.

But you were pretty tough that got in -- or anybody that got in Gordon

Brown's way. I was from a fairly different

mirror. Most of the time I was working in opposition, a hard fight

to win an election which is why both Eds are finding it difficult. The

because we have got to deal with people like you and people like

Alistair Campbell did a good job and people like you and people like

I think I did. That was many moons ago for stop thank you for joining

us. Let's go to Alistair Campbell. What

did you make of him? He never did anything wrong, just doing his job,

this is all a waste of time. Well, I think I would say

dishonest. He is right that the delegates don't want to talk about

it, people would rather focus on jobs, the economy, because these are

it, people would rather focus on the issues that matter to people,

but I think you cannot go through the decade we did with people like

Charlie Whelan and Damian McBride and the politics they operated and

expect him to come along and say I don't read books and I don't know

what is going on for stop I thought don't read books and I don't know

you were absolutely right to press him with some of those questions.

The idea he hasn't read all of these is borderline dishonest as well. The

point is when he talks about we want to get on and get a Labour

government, one of the reasons we don't have a Labour government is

because of the way people like this don't have a Labour government is

behaved when we were in Edmond. A narrative was fed to the public that

Tony Blair wasn't good at his job, any minister who was very good and

seen as a threat were consistently briefed against, and as you know,

you have been around politics long time, it can get very tough, things

can get heated, because the issues matter. The reason why I am still

angry with people like them, and a lot of the journalists who are now

running around saying how terrible these people are who were the ones

taking this poison, I have no time for them, I never will, because they

are among the reasons we have got a Conservative government screwing up

the recovery, the health service, punishing people on welfare and with

a foreign policy in a shambles and that is the stuff that matters and

they are partly responsible for the Conservatives being in power and is

being out of power. If he can come down and think you can have his 15

minutes of fame, sell thousands of books, but he should have it on its

conscience one of the reasons we have a Conservative government is

because he spent his whole time inside government at taxpayers

expense on the payroll frankly undermining the effectiveness and

performance of that government. Public sector workers are

experiencing a on any pay rises. Today Labour delegates voted to get

rid of that, in breach of party policy. They voted to support a

union motion lifting the 1%, even though the Labour leadership want to

stick to the coalition spending plans if they were elected in 2015.

Our people need hope, they need to know now that when our party will

end the pay which is blighting so many lives. It is not rocket

science. If this is the cost of living conference the pay freeze

must end. No ifs, no buts. A clear commitment to end the Tory pay

freeze. We know Labour makes a difference, our people in our

freeze. We know Labour makes a communities have to believe it as

well. Millions hate this coalition but believes there is no

alternative. We have to be bold, more than a PR machine, if we are

bold we will give people hope, and our rallying cry, our rallying call

bold we will give people hope, and has got to be Labour stands for fair

pay and Labour will end the six-year pay freeze which is destroying so

many families. That will show that their political party, our party is

brave, bold and that we will be back in power in 2015. Can I see those in

favour Mr Mark and it against? Carried.

There was also time for the Shadow Foreign Secretary to talk about his

idea for Syria, Afghanistan and Europe.

We have, as a party, learned the lessons of the past. Intervening

immediately and asking questions later would have ill served our

country. As Labour we are prepared to support force where we must, as

we did in Libya just two years ago, but we should support diplomacy

where we can. Now, thankfully, a new diplomatic path is open to eradicate

chemical weapons in Syria. In part, due to those votes in Westminster.

For Britain to now try to retreat from the world would be as futile as

it would be foolish. And that, conference, is why Britain's

continued membership of the European Union matters so much. The fantasy

of written, as some kind of North Atlantic Singapore, is just that. It

is a fantasy. British jobs, British exports, British influence in the

world, all benefit from Britain's continued membership of the European

Union. Also the leader of Labour at the European Parliament addressed

delegates in Brighton. She accused David Cameron of being

too much and urged Labour to go on to the attack ahead of the European

elections next year. With David Cameron and his ministers

under threat from UKIP reacting by making a stewardess stories like

this supposed attack on our British rebate by scheming Europeans --

spurious stories. Did you see how much about what the macho per

minister said in Brussels, in this town you have to be ready for an

ambush at any time, that means lock and load and have won up the spout

and be ready for it. David Cameron, a disturbing cocktail of John

Wayne, and Alan Partridge. The mind boggles, doesn't it? He is

out of touch at home and he is isolated abroad. But I am getting

fed up. I am fed up with David Cameron making up pretend fight with

Europe, fed up with Nigel Farage getting more airtime than briefs for

five -- Bruce Forsyth. I am fed up with intelligent journalists failing

to challenge what UKIP stand for. A vote for Labour will mean a strong,

prosperous written, working with our neighbours to play a full part in

the world affairs, not sulking on the sidelines. It needs all of us

here in this whole to be knocking on doors up and down the country and

giving that message. A good result for Labour in next year 's Euro

elections is also a key staging post on the road to numbered ten. --

another ten. Next year 's elections matter more than ever. If we want to

make a difference to people 's lives, if we want a fairer, more

prosperous society, we need Labour in the European Parliament, Labour

in councils across the country, and Labour in government in 2015.

That is all for tonight from Brighton as the Labour Party down if

you buy it and absorb everything they have been told. Tomorrow

morning we will hear from the shadow transport secretary, the Shadow

Secretary for energy and employment change, the big moment of the day is

Ed Miliband's leaders speech in the afternoon. The conference special

will be on BBC Two at midday and again at 2pm for Ed Miliband's big

speech will stop I will be back tomorrow evening for this programme

but good night.