Rachel Reeves' Liverpool speech interrupted by protester

A protester was removed from the hall after interrupting Chancellor Rachel Reeves' speech at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool. Ms Reeves delivered her speech on Monday (September 23) lunchtime, promising that the new Labour government would not return to austerity.

In her first conference speech as Chancellor, Ms Reeves received applause and a standing ovation as she began, following a montage video. However, the speech was halted briefly as a protester began to shout about the government's arms sales to Israel.

In response, the chancellor said: “This is a changed Labour Party, a Labour Party that represents working people, not a party of protest.” That line received a round of applause from the audience as the heckler was removed.

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A campaign group called The Climate Resistance has claimed responsibility for the protest. Sam Simons, a spokesman for the group said: “Labour promised us change – instead we’re getting more of the same.

"The same pandering to the fossil fuel industry; the same arms licences that are fuelling a genocide in Gaza, and the same austerity that sees the poorest hit hardest.

“It’s time for Labour to start putting the needs of people before the interests of profit. That means immediately stopping arms licences to Israel, blocking new oil and gas, and standing up for the communities already being devastated by the climate crisis.”

As her speech continued, the Chancellor said “tough decisions” in the upcoming Budget would not “dim our ambition for Britain” and insisted Tory austerity had been a “destructive choice” which would not be repeated.

The Chancellor said: “Because I know how much damage has been done in those 14 years, let me say one thing straight up: there will be no return to austerity. Conservative austerity was a destructive choice for our public services, and for investment and growth too.

“Yes, we must deal with the Tory legacy and that means tough decisions, but I won’t let that dim our ambition for Britain. So, it will be a budget with real ambition, a budget to fix the foundations, a budget to deliver the change that we promised, a budget to rebuild Britain.”

Ms Reeves repeated her promise not to “turn a blind eye” to “Covid fraudsters” and those who “used a national emergency to line their own pockets”. She drew her loudest applause yet as she said: “That money belongs in our police, it belongs in our health service and belongs in our schools. Conference, we want that money back.”