Beneath the performative radicalism, the party has nothing to offer but empty promises and technocratic bungling Daily Telegraph 30/06/26 A strange paradox has loomed over Labour’s party conference in Liverpool. On the one hand, the event has carried an air of triumph and vindication. The PM’s fans have been singing “Burnham Baby Burnham” to the “Disco Inferno” tune while queuing for their coffees in the arena. Outside, the loud speakers have been playing the Game of Thrones soundtrack on loop to fete the King of the North. On the other hand, considering that the party finds itself with a brand new leader, the atmosphere has at times felt oddly subdued. True, I came across pockets of exuberant energy. Placard-wielding activists have been out in force, campaigning for everything from the liberation of Lucy Letby to the pedestrianisation of the M6. The book corner has been packed with people poring over Andy Burnham’s tome Head North and Adam Rutherford’s How to Argue with a Racist . ...
The Chancellor might want people to hear the truth, but few in his party are listening Daily Telegraph Published 28 September 2026 6:28pm BST When politicians say they intend to level with the British people you can be pretty certain they will do nothing of the kind. In his Liverpool conference speech John Healey, the Chancellor, mainly indulged in the usual misty-eyed socialist whimsy and empty sloganising often associated with such events. However, he did have one home truth to vouchsafe to Labour delegates: we don’t have any money. He recalled how he was in the Treasury when Gordon Brown was chancellor, the economy was booming and there was cash to spend. This is not the case now, he said. The nation’s £3tn debt is almost 100 per cent of GDP and more is spent on financing it than on defence, the Home Office and justice combined. Mr Healey sought to hold out the prospect of “hope again” – the conference slogan – but cautioned that this would have to be achieved within the conf...