Politics latest: First major speech from chancellor - as Tories begin leadership contest talks' (2024)

Rachel Reeves is on her feet in the Treasury, delivering her first major speech as chancellor.

She is expected to set out measures to unblock infrastructure and private investment, and will vow to "fix the foundations of Britain's economy".

Here is what she says, as she says it:

• The chancellor opens by saying that "sustained economic growth is the only route to the improved prosperity that our country needs, and to improve the living standards of working people";
• She moves on to the inheritance from the last government, saying she warned before the election that the next government would inherit "the worst set of circ*mstances since the Second World War", and adds: "What I have seen over the past 72 hours has only confirmed that";
• Ms Reeves says she asked Treasury officials for an "assessment of the state of our spending inheritance" which she announces she will present to parliament before the summer recess;
• The initial assessment, she says, shows that "had the UK grown at just the average rate of other OECD economies these last 14 years, our economy would be over £140bn larger" which "could have bought in another £58bn in tax revenues in the last year alone" for public services;
• The three steps to growth will be "stability, investment, and reform" - and she reiterates no increases in national insurance, the basic higher or additional rates of income tax, or VAT;
• She says she has received a report from a taskforce looking at increasing investment through a National Wealth Fund, that she will announce next steps "in short order";
• Ms Reeves turns to the "antiquated" planning system, saying work to reform it is under way, including a consultation on a new approach to planning before the end of the month, including restoring mandatory housing targets;
• The government is immediately ending the ban on new on-shore wind projects, and will create a new taskforce "to accelerate stalled housing sites in our country";

The new chancellor, Rachel Reeves, is delivering her first major speech as the government gets to work on delivering its manifesto.

Ms Reeves, who is the first female chancellor in the exchequer's near-1,000-year history, is expected to unveil some "immediate interventions" to trigger growth in the economy.

She is delivering the speech at the Treasury in front of business leaders, many of whom backed Labour at the election.

You can watch the speech in the stream above, at the link below - and follow live updates here in the Politics Hub.

Sir Keir Starmer has announced a raft of new ministerial appointments as he continues to fill the various roles in his government.

Here is the full list:

• Anneliese Dodds as a foreign office minister and minister for women and equalities in the Department for Education;
• Nick Thomas–Symonds as paymaster general and cabinet office minister for the Constitution and European Relations in the Cabinet Office;
• Lord Livermore as financial secretary to the Treasury;
• Stephen Doughty MP as a minister of state in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office;
• Dame Angela Eagle DBE MP as a minister of state in the Home Office;
• Dame Diana Johnson DBE MP as a minister of state in the Home Office;
• Lord Coaker as a minister of state in the Ministry of Defence;
• Maria Eagle MP as a minister of state in the Ministry of Defence;
• Heidi Alexander MP as a minister of state in the Ministry of Justice;
• Karin Smyth MP as a minister of state in the Department of Health and Social Care;
• Stephen Kinnock MP as a minister of state in the Department of Health and Social Care;
• Catherine McKinnell MP as a minister of state in the Department for Education;
• Sarah Jones MP as a minister of state in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the Department for Business and Trade;
• Alison McGovern MP as a minister of state in the Department for Work and Pensions;
• Sir Stephen Timms MP as a minister of state in the Department for Work and Pensions;
• Sir Chris Bryant MP as a minister ofsState in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Culture, Media and Sports;
• Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill CBE as a minister of state in the Department for Transport;
• Daniel Zeichner MP as a minister of state in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

By Deborah Haynes, security and defence editor

A trip to Ukraine by the UK's new defence secretary within 48 hours of taking office underlines the importance attached by the new government to helping Ukrainian forces in their war with Russia.

But, despite positive-sounding statements about new military assistance, John Healey does not have a magic tap that he can instantly turn on to offer the volume of weapons and ammunition - in particular artillery shells - that Kyiv most urgently needs.

Instead, he is taking charge of military matters at a time when UK defence is in crisis after months of drift under the Conservatives and decades of demise.

Rishi Sunak, the previous prime minister, only appeared to grasp the vital importance of defence a few weeks before he called the general election.

He declared in April that he was putting the British defence industry on a "war footing" and promised to spend 2.5% of national income on the armed forces by the end of the decade, up from just over 2% now.

Sir Keir Starmer has made a point of emphasising that defence and national security are the first duty of his government.

However, a detailed focus on fixing the hollowed-out military has been notably absent from his initial public statements even though the world is increasingly dangerous, given Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the threat of a widening conflict in the Middle East and tensions with China over Taiwan.

Read the full analysis here:

By Faye Brown, political reporter

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to "hit the ground running" with a focus on delivery from day one after returning his party to government for the first time in 14 years.

Already he hasassembled his cabinet, scrapped the Rwanda scheme, announced mission delivery boards and embarked ona whistle-stop tour of the devolved nations.

That's all before parliament has even reconvened, with MPs due to be sworn in from Tuesday to officially kick off the first 100 days of a Labour government.

Below, Sky News takes a look at what we can expect to happen over the next few months:

Tory MP and former minister Kevin Hollinrake has insisted to Sky News that they did not "underestimate" Reform UK at all.

That is despite the insurgent right-wing party coming in second place in 98 seats across the country, picking up 15% of the vote.

He said: "We knew they'd be a political force to be reckoned with."

But he went on to say that they do not offer any policies to tackle challenges like migration, for example, that are different to what the Tory party offers.

Looking to the future, he said: "I think people will trust us again and realise, actually, that a vote for Reform delivered a Labour government.

"We kept saying that's what would happen, and that's exactly what did happen."

Voters "wanted to teach us a lesson", and "we've got to accept that", he said.

We asked Tory MP and former minister Kevin Hollinrake how the election went so disastrously wrong for the party, and he said they "didn't deliver on our promises".

He said they were "knocked off course" by things like COVID, the cost of living crisis, and their "internal difficulties".

"We've got to accept we made mistakes in those things. But when you keep saying to people you're going to control migration and then you don't, people after a while stop listening."

"We had the levers at our disposal, we didn't use them as effectively as we could have done and should have done, and that's what we've to learn from and explain how we're going to do that in the future."

Asked if the election was called too soon, Mr Hollinrake said it's "easy to make decisions from the sidelines".

"Rishi [Sunak] decided that was the right time to go, and I respect his decision.

"I think given the scale of the defeat, I don't think it would have made that much difference when he'd chosen to go."

The low vote share Labour achieved, he added, shows that they "can win in 2029" if they present a solid case to the public, he argued.

We've just been speaking with Tory MP and former minister, Kevin Hollinrake.

He said he is hoping to be appointed a shadow business minister going forward.

But the major question, beyond shadow frontbench appointments, facing the Conservative Party is who the next leader will be.

He said he has not made his mind up who to support, but added: "I think we should have a much slower process than we've done in the past. So, we've got some months to pick the right person.

"I think we should start that contest probably in Autumn, September time, and conclude it by the end of the year, and give the people who step forward the right chance to make their case about why they should lead the Conservative Party."

Mr Hollinrake added that the country is "in dire need of the Conservative Party, whatever the electors decided last week".

Sky News' deputy political editor Sam Coates and Politico's Jack Blanchard are back in your podcast feeds with their guide to the day ahead in politics.

They discuss how the prime minister is tackling his first full week and talk about his government’s approach to home and foreign affairs, kicking off with the chancellor's first big speech.

And how will the Conservative Party choose a new leader?

Listen below:

👉Tap here to follow Politics at Jack and Sam's wherever you get your podcasts👈

Email Jack and Sam: jackandsam@sky.uk

The prime minister has arrived at Stormont Castle as his UK tour continues.

Sir Keir Starmer will meet first minister Michelle O'Neill and deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly (pictured greeting him below) as he tries to "reset" relations between the UK government and the devolved nations.

The PM is also joined by his Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn.

He will travel to Wales to meet Labour's only first minister Vaughan Gething later today.

Watch the PM's arrival below: