Andrea
Leadsom, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy,
speaking today at Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, said:

(Check against delivery)

“That’s what people are saying
right across this country and as Business Secretary I can assure you that’s
what businesses are saying too – they need certainty, and for that to happen
Parliament has to stop messing around.

We know there’s no crystal ball
in politics, but no one could have foreseen how parliament would end up so
determined to overturn the referendum.

So when Boris became Prime
Minister it was such a relief to see so clearly his personal commitment to
getting us out of the EU. He has the personality and pizzazz to get Brexit over
the line, doesn’t he!

And to support his efforts, my
urgent priority in this new job has been getting business ready for Brexit.

I’ve been touring the four UK
nations to talk to different businesses about their own Brexit preparations and
how government can help. Of course there are plenty of challenges, but the
efforts of so many over the last three years means we are well prepared for
leaving the EU.

But what’s really fascinating
about being the lead minister for our business and energy sectors is the chance
to take advantage of the superb future that lies ahead for our great country.
 

We’re standing on the cusp of a
new industrial revolution, and for the first time since the first industrial
revolution, the UK is positioned to lead in extraordinary new ways.

So I want to talk about my three
top priorities – things I want the UK to be famous for. And with Kwasi Kwarteng,
Chris Skidmore, Kelly Tollhurst, Nadhim Zahawi and Ian Duncan we’ve a superb
Ministerial team as diverse and talented as the United Kingdom we are working
for.

Our first priority is to lead the
world in tackling climate change.

Since 1990 we’ve reduced our
carbon emissions by 42% – while growing our economy by nearly three quarters.
 

So we’ve shown that decarbonising
can also create jobs and prosperity – we already have 400,000 jobs in the low
carbon sector but this could reach 2 million by 2030.

We’re working out the path to
achieving net zero emissions by 2050.  We can do it, and we will help the
world to do it.

Contrast that to Labour who last
week announced net zero by 2030! Total tosh!

A perfect example of Labour
promising something they can’t deliver and don’t understand.

Unusually, I find myself agreeing
with the GMB Union, who’s spokesman said, this ‘threatens whole communities,
threatens whole jobs… This means that within a decade people’s petrol cars
being confiscated. This will mean families can only take one flight every five
years. Net zero carbon emissions by 2030 is utterly unachievable.’  Well
said that man!

Turning to our second priority –
to transform the productive capability of our economy.

All my life I’ve been impressed
by the huge range of talented UK scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs, whose
work will transform lives, let alone our economy.

And in the Business department
we’ve set out what we call our ‘grand challenges’. Each will change lives for
the better.

For example our life sciences
grand challenge has just kicked off the world’s biggest DNA research project
that will help to prevent and even cure diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s and
dementia.

Our space grand challenge will
help grow our commercial satellite industry as well as develop the astonishing
prospect of space flight that could one day offer a four hour trip to Australia
via the stars. Once he retires, I plan to recommend it to the Speaker of the
Commons.

Our automation grand challenge
will see the way we travel change profoundly in years to come with your parcels
delivered by drones and your car driving itself. Imagine not having to ask your
kids to pick you up after a good night out.
 

And our third priority, something
I care passionately about.  And that is to make the UK the best place in
the world to work or to start a business. We have always been the Party of business

When I was growing up, my Mum and
StepDad had a furniture shop, and I remember their six day working week.

I also remember the appalling
impact on the economy of a Labour government back in the 1970s. When the super
tax on the self employed was 98%.  

Those memories shaped my
politics, but it was Margaret Thatcher’s vision of a shareholding democracy and
her introduction of the right to buy that shaped my personal ambition -and that
is to help everybody to build a secure life for themselves and their families.

So I want to see a better
environment for business, less red tape and lower taxes to incentivise them;

But at the same time I want to
make sure those who work for them get a decent wage, a fair contract and when
they face life’s challenges such as parenthood, illness or caring
responsibilities, a modern working environment allows them the flexibility to
balance work and life.

Contrast to Labour – if they’re
not nationalising you, they’re stealing part of your business, and if you’re
the worker they pretend to be on your side but their attack on our thriving
economy will mean job losses, lower investment and less opportunities. 

So if Labour ever pluck up the
courage to face the voters, then we should all make the case for the
Conservative Government this country needs. So when you’re asked: what will the
Conservatives do for me?

You can tell them –

It is a Conservative Government
that will lead the world in tackling climate change;

It is a Conservative Government
helping you live longer, with better health and greater opportunity;

It is a Conservative Government
that will make the UK the best place in the world to be trained, work or start
a business;

And it is the Conservatives and
Boris Johnson who will get Brexit done, secure our future prosperity and make
sure Jeremy Corbyn never gets the keys to No 10.”

ENDS

Outdated guidance and unenforceable design ideas will be replaced with plans to deliver beautiful homes that families and communities are proud to call their own, through a brand-new building design guide launched today by Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick.

Currently there is no accepted national standard for the development of homes, only vague documents with little enforceable power. This new design guide will introduce a national standard for local authorities to adhere to, with the option of designing their own applicable guides reflecting local needs. Where possible emphasis will be placed on tree-lined streets and green infrastructure, in line with the government’s broader environmental focus.

The design guide, published by the government today, will have genuine clout and be capable of being a material consideration in planning applications and appeals, meaning that local planning authorities should take it into account when taking decisions. Ministers will lay a Written Ministerial Statement setting out its purpose and how it is expected to be used, while the National Planning Policy Framework will be updated to reflect this at the first opportunity.

The government is determined to enhance the roles of local authorities, combined authorities and mayors in owning the aesthetics and development of their areas.
The new design guide is part of a broader commitment to localism. It will provide local residents with a greater say in the design of homes built in their own area, allowing them to take the key characteristics provided at a
national level as a foundation and apply them in the most locally appropriate way.

This new vision will enhance the roles of local authorities, combined authorities and mayors in shaping the aesthetics and development of their areas.

We will make the planning system work in support of better design and style, not against it.

Robert Jenrick, the Housing Secretary, said:

“The government is committed to building the homes this country needs, but it is not all about bricks, mortar and numbers. Too often, new developments come at the expense of beauty, quality and design. This shouldn’t be the case and the Conservatives are determined to deliver homes that families and communities are proud to call their own.

“As Housing Secretary, I am replacing the existing vague and outdated guidance with a brand-new national design guide. It will be produced with a more ambitious and firmer vision for better designed homes.

“This new design guide will have real clout. There will be a national standard for local authorities to adhere to, but we recognise that what good looks like differs across England. So, for the first-time local authorities will be expected to design their own locally applicable guides in keeping with the national standard, which must deliver the quality of homes that we expect.

“I want to put people at the heart of the housing process and provide a strong blueprint for building homes that families are proud to live in, recognising beauty and design in the most locally appropriate way.”

ENDS

A
new focus on the “forgotten fifty per cent” of the population who don’t go into
university will be launched by the Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, today
as he lays out an ambition to beat Germany in delivering opportunities across
non-academic routes within a decade. 

To
support this ambition a huge expansion of Institutes of Technology will be
launched today to make sure young people across the country have access to
quality technical education. Up to £120m will be invested to take the total
number from twelve currently planned to up to twenty in cities across England.
This huge expansion of the programme will particularly benefit the North-West
of England, Teesside, the East Midlands, and cities along the South Coast.

Institutes
of Technology bring together business, universities and FE colleges, to deliver
post-16 FE and technical and vocational courses suited to the needs of the
business in the regions they serve. This move will make sure that key sectors
and every region in England will benefit from at least one IoT, meaning that
wherever you live or work, there’ll be an IoT to enable you to take your
technical skills to the next level.

The
Education Secretary will also form a new Skills & Productivity Board of
leading labour market economists to advise him policies to drive forward the
provision of world leading skills and qualifications, particularly for the FE
sector. This will be geared towards ensuring the courses undertaken by students
will fit with to the demands of the workforce of tomorrow, helping drive
productivity and ensure taxpayers money is focused on delivering the skills we
need.

Building
on the success of the free schools programme to date, Mr Williamson will also
expand the number of specialist maths free schools open from two to eleven, to
ensure elite maths teaching is available for all 16-19-year-olds, wherever they
live in England. These schools will ensure all young people gifted in maths
have the best opportunity of achieving academic excellence, working with
likeminded young people and going on to academic success, whatever their background
and wherever they live.

These
announcements follow the recent spending review which saw school funding across
the country increase, with an additional £14 billion being spent on schools
over the next three years and every school to receive more funding. 

Secretary
of State for Education, Gavin Williamson, said:

“There
is one part of our education system that’s often overlooked, Further Education.
While past Labour Governments obsessed over targets to get half the population
to university, they forgot about the other 50%. We’re going to put that right.

“Apprenticeships,
technical and vocational education are just as valuable as University education
and they are at least as important to our economy. We want to ensure that in
the next decade, we beat Germany on the opportunities we give to those taking
technical and vocational routes.

“We’re
going to super-charge Further Education and set our sights high. We will ensure
equal focus is given to all young people, whether they choose the technical,
vocational or academic routes.”

ENDS

Steve
Barclay, Brexit Secretary, speaking today at Conservative Party Conference in
Manchester, said:

 

“Delaying
Brexit has come at a cost.

It
has cost us trust in our democracy.

For
those who voted in good faith at the last General Election; who believed the
promises of MPs who said they would honour our vote to leave the EU.

And
it has a massive financial cost – in extra payments to the EU.

It
costs an extra £1 billion in payments to Brussels every month we delay.

And
how much has this delay cost us in lost opportunities?

The
very opportunities which we voted for – to lower living costs by forging new
trade deals around the world.

With
so much delay, is it any wonder my friend Jacob has taken to lying down on the
government front bench.

But
there has been one, immediate cost from delaying Brexit… 

The
prolonged uncertainty has caused worry and concern to over 3 million EU
Citizens living in the UK.

For
those EU citizens living here, I have a direct message today. 

You
are not a part of the negotiation. Your life and livelihood in the UK is not in
doubt.

The
Prime Minister set out in his first hour in office, on the steps of Downing
Street, that we want you to stay.

To
bring up your families in our communities…

To
work in our public services and for our businesses…

In
our NHS – where there are now 700 more EU doctors than at the time of the
referendum. 

We
value the contribution you make to our country and are pleased that you have
chosen to make your home here.

We
have guaranteed your rights to live, work and stay in the UK with full citizens
rights for as long as you choose.

Now
it is time for the EU to match that guarantee.

We
are all too familiar with the refrain ‘despite Brexit’.

Yet,
despite Brexit, we have record low unemployment… and the highest inward
investment of any country in the EU.

Despite
Brexit, just last week, London overtook New York to become THE world’s number
one city for investments in fintech firms…

And
despite Brexit, Jaguar Land Rover have opened the UK’s biggest state-of-the-art
car design centre in Warwickshire, delivering a £500m vote of confidence in
Britain.

It’s
time to stop apologising for Brexit, and to unleash the opportunities it
offers.

We
can source products that we do not produce at a better price.

Too
often the EU restricts access to markets that want to trade with us…

Like
the foods that we do not grow, or the goods that we do not specialise in
producing,

With
new trade deals with other countries we can help the developing world through
trade, rather than handing out aid.

To
empower countries through free trade is the essence of being Conservative, and
an important reason why I am a Brexiteer.

To
use Brexit as a catalyst for change across all parts of our United Kingdom,
including areas like my own in the Fens…

Who
see Brexit as an opportunity – not a problem to be solved.

Jeremy
Corbyn parades his credentials as an animal welfare campaigner.

But
his delay prevents any sovereign choice on the continued live exports of
animals. 

He
claims to care about the planet, yet his delay to Brexit means we can’t choose
to remove VAT on environmental products like solar panels.

His
delay prevents us from implementing a new Agriculture Bill designed for our
British farmers rather than the French.

Delay
also means less time to focus on our people’s priorities.

It’s
the Conservatives who want to get Brexit done so that we can focus on what the
people want to see.

The
biggest increase in spending on the NHS…

Tackling
crime through the extra 20,000 police officers…

Levelling
up opportunity, including on school funding…

And
delay puts our United Kingdom at risk..

Encouraging
the Scottish Nationalists that if one referendum can be ignored, then so too
can the 2014 referendum on the integrity of the UK itself.

We
will defend the Union – because we are the Conservative and Unionist Party.

And
what do Labour want to have more delay on Brexit for? 

They
cannot even count the vote at their conference on what they want to do… and
it wasn’t even Diane Abbott doing the counting.

Remain?

Sit
on the fence?

Keep
it a secret until after the election?

Labour
don’t trust the people and that is why the people cannot trust them.

Labour
ignore the votes of the many, because they prefer to listen to the opinions of
the North London few.

Their
position is to negotiate Brexit and then to scrap it.

That
would demolish the UK’s negotiating position.

And
what would they do once they had negotiated this fantasy ‘better’ deal?

As
the Shadow Foreign Secretary herself has made clear, they would bring it back
and have an unwanted and divisive second referendum, where they would campaign
for Remain against their own deal.

Labour’s
Brexit policy can be summed up in three words: dither and delay.

And
look at the so-called Liberal ‘Democrats’.

They
want to revoke Article 50 without even letting you have a say.

The
Lib Dem position is now so extreme that it has even been rejected by the Green
Party.

The
Irish Deputy Prime Minister said on Wednesday that “there are solutions to this
but it is a matter of political will”. 

I
agree.

The
Commission has said that it is open to “creative and flexible solutions on the
border in Northern Ireland”. 

I
am too.

President
Juncker said “he is not wedded to the backstop”. 

Nor
are we. So let’s abolish it.

The
Prime Minister and I are focused on negotiating a deal.

But
if we can’t get a deal, we’ll leave on 31 October anyway.

Michel
Barnier once said that “the clock is ticking”. 

For
Jeremy Corbyn – the election clock is now ticking very loudly. 

Our
communities should not have to pay millions for each further hour of his delay.

We,
as Conservatives, know it’s your money that he would waste.

We
need to get Brexit done.  And with this Prime Minister, we will.”

ENDS

Chancellor
of the Duchy of Lancaster, Michael Gove MP, speaking today at Conservative
Party Conference in Manchester, said:

(Check
against delivery)

These are
testing times…

…for our
party

…and for our
country.

A paralysed
parliament.

A polarised
politics.

Urgent
reforms this country needs…

…put on
pause.

And all
because the referendum vote has not been honoured…

… and Brexit
has not been delivered.

17.4 million
people…

…voted to
leave the European Union

…in June
2016.

More than
have ever voted for any party

…or any
policy

…in our
country’s history.

But three
years on that democratic verdict has not been honoured.

We cannot
allow this division and delay to continue.

We must Get.
Brexit. Done.

And the only
party leader determined

…to secure a
good deal for Britain

… and get
Brexit done

… is our
Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Now, I’ve
known Boris for more than thirty years.

And while we
haven’t always agreed

…on
everything…

…let me tell
you this.

Boris is
brave…

…he is
determined

…he loves
this country

…and he delivers.

And that is
because Boris is an optimist.

He believes
in the power of the British people…

…to change
the world for the better.

That
optimism has allowed him to overcome big challenges before.

Throughout
his career of public service…

…people have
told him it just can’t be done.

You can’t
possibly beat Ken Livingstone in London…

… to become the
mayor.

You can’t
possibly get re-elected in a Labour city…

…with a
Conservative Government in Westminster.

You can’t
possibly get new bikes on our roads…

…new buses
on our streets

…keep fares
down and the economy growing

…cut crime

…get
investment for new schools

…deliver the
world’s best ever Olympics

…and lift
thousands out of poverty.

But Boris
delivered.

As he did
when we led the Vote Leave campaign. 

People said
we’d never win.

The odds
were against us…

The
establishment was against us….

Even Nigel
Farage was against us!

But Vote
Leave won…

…Because our
message then…

… like our
Prime Minister today

…was
optimistic,

…forward-looking,

…and
freedom-loving.

And that is
why…

… I trust
Boris

… to do what
we’ve waited too long to do.

Get a great
deal.

Get Brexit done.

And allow us
all to get on with what matters.

Investing in
our precious NHS…

… supporting
teachers in our great state schools,

…backing our
police in the fight against crime.

These are
the people’s priorities.

They are our
priorities.

That is why
we are the real people’s party.

And while we
are optimistic about our future…

… we are
realistic about some of the challenges immediately ahead. 

In getting
Brexit done, we will have to show resolution.

We have to
negotiate hard to get the right Brexit deal.

And if we
don’t get a deal by October 31st…

…we will
have to leave without a deal.

We cannot
allow this process to drag on indefinitely. 

Now, I don’t
deny that leaving without a deal will…

…initially…

…mean there
are some challenges.

The EU plans
to impose new tariffs…

…new checks
on trade

…and isn’t
showing the same generosity to UK nationals

…as we show
to EU nationals.

But we will
stay open for trade…

…open for
business

…and
determined to respect the rights of EU citizens here,

We have
taken huge steps to get ready…

… investing
in new customs procedures to smooth trade,

…supporting
businesses to adapt to new rules

…and
standing up for our citizens abroad.

The level of
our preparations has accelerated massively…

… since Boris
became Prime Minister.

Of course we
cannot anticipate every risk…

… and cannot
guarantee against some turbulence.

Which is why
I would much prefer us to secure a deal with the EU before October 31st.

It’s in
their interests as well as ours.

But if we
can’t, then…

…leave we
must.

Because…

…while the
difficulties caused by leaving without a deal will pass,

…the damage
to our democracy

…in not
getting Brexit done

…would
endure,

…and
resound,

…for much
longer.

Our
democracy is precious –

…and it depends
on people trusting us as politicians

…when we say
we will put our trust in them.

On the eve
of the referendum result in 2016…

… it was the
late Paddy Ashdown who got to the heart of it.

He said…

“I will
forgive no-one who does not accept the sovereign voice of the British people
once it has spoken…

…When
democracy speaks, we obey.”

When
democracy speaks

…we, the
politicians, obey.

It is the
position of a true liberal…

…and a true
democrat.

But it is
not the position of the party…

… that today
calls itself the Liberal Democrats.

They refuse
to accept the sovereign voice of the British people.

They have
worked constantly…

…to delay,
dilute and deny Brexit.

And now they
want to cancel Brexit altogether.

Telling the
public they won’t be listened to until they agree with Guy Verhofstadt…

…isn’t
liberal or democratic.

It’s
patronising…

…condescending,

…we know
best,

…get back in
line,

…know your
place arrogance…

…of the kind
that makes Marie Antoinette…

…seem like a
model of grounded humility!

Voting
Liberal Democrat doesn’t get Brexit done…

…but it does
risk something else.

Prime
Minister Jeremy Corbyn.

Voting for
any party other than the Conservatives…

… risks
letting Labour into power…

…and Corbyn
into Downing Street.

And Labour
in Government wouldn’t get Brexit done. 

They want to
prolong our membership of the EU…

…negotiate
for many months more with Brussels

…agree a
deal on the EU’s terms

…then hold
another referendum

…in which
they’d be prepared to say we should stay in the EU forever.

When we
should be getting on with improving education…

…
strengthening the NHS,

…fighting
crime

…and
creating jobs….

Labour would
be getting on with what it does best…

…showing
weakness abroad,

…sowing
division at home

…and tearing
itself and the country apart.

You simply
need to look at Jeremy Corbyn’s record.

How can we
let a man who supported SinnFein/IRA…

…be in
charge of our security?

How can we
let a man who thinks we shouldn’t have immigration controls…

…be in
charge of our borders?

How can we
let a man who thinks we should punish companies for being successful…

…be in
charge of our economy?

And how on
earth can we let a man who’s indulged, …accommodated

…and excused

…the most
terrible anti-semitism…

…be in
charge of our democracy?

Soft on
terrorism,

…supine on
security,

…bankrupt
economically

…and a
danger to minorities…

Jeremy
Corbyn is totally unfit to be Prime Minister of our country.

Yes, these are
testing times.

But when our
party…

…and our
country

…have been
tested in the past…

we have met

…and
mastered

…the
challenges of our times.

Conservatives
rose to the challenge of the industrial revolution…

…with the
courage to cut tariffs

…and the
compassion to pass laws to protect factory workers.

Conservatives
responded to the turbulence of the 1930s…

…with
investment in health

…and housing
for the poorest

…and the
resolution to re-arm

…in the face
of dictatorships.

Conservatives
reversed the decline of our nation in the 1980s…

… by
spreading wealth,

… extending
home ownership,

… increasing
educational opportunity

…and facing
down Marxism

…at home and
abroad.

And after
the great crash of 2008

Conservative
leadership…

…repaired
our economy,

…reformed
our schools,

…helped
millions into work,

…put
rehabilitation at the heart of justice,

…fought
climate change,

…enhanced
our environment

…and held
the light of liberty aloft…

…while
freedom came under attack across the globe.

Now we have
the chance…

…this
generation of Conservatives

…to embrace
a new decade of renewal.

To make our
country the best in the world…

…for
education and science

The best in
the world…

…when it
comes to using technology

…to banish
hunger,

…fight
climate change

…and end
poverty.

The most
civilised,

…tolerant

…and
welcoming home

… to people
of all backgrounds.

The most creative,

…imaginative

…and
entrepreneurial place on earth.

A nation
renewed…

…and a
mission to lead the world.

That is our
challenge…

…and our
calling.

Let us be
worthy of it together.

 

ENDS