Angela Rayner's Conference speech

Angela Rayner MP, Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, speech at Labour Party Conference 2024:

Thank you for that introduction Paul and thank you for what you and your members do to support people across this region.

Conference, 12 months ago, I stood here and said I hoped never again to open conference as Deputy Leader of the Opposition.

So, it an absolute great honour to stand here today as your Deputy Prime Minister and it is an honour to open the first Conference of a Labour Government.

And Conference I want to start off with a thanks to the British people.

You entrusted us with the task of change and we will not forget it.

You kept faith with us and we will keep faith with you.

And let me thank all of you in this room too and my brilliant ministerial team. Every member, activist, councillor, community leader, trade unionist and I saw so many of you on my battle bus during the campaign.

You have been our voices in our communities for the last 14 years. Voices that spoke up when the Tories' told us to shut up.

They thought our Party was history. But this year Conference we made history. Together.

Not just a victory for our party but a victory of our values. A victory not of politicians but of people.

We won because we had the courage to change our party. The discipline to make hard decisions and the determination to remain united.

And now, change begins.

Even now - especially now - there will be no complacency.

We've seen where that leads.

Don't forget what they did: partygate, Covid contracts, the lies, division, scapegoating, and the unfunded tax cuts for the richest that crashed our economy. Don't forget any of it.

The Tories failed Britain and they tried to cover it up.

A crater in the heart of Britain's economy. A puncture in the pocket of every working family. And a £22 billion black hole.

And not so much as an apology, let alone an acceptance, from the Tories.

Instead, next week they will gather in the wreckage of their defeat. Reduced to 10-minute auditions for wannabee leaders, beating each other to different shades of blue. On a show that no-one is watching.

Perhaps that's why Kemi launched her leadership campaign with an attack on Doctor Who.

It was bad enough when they wanted to deal with Farage. Now she's doing sidedeals with the Daleks.

But Conference, at least after three months as shadow housing secretary, she finally expressed concern about a tenant. It's just a pity it was David Tennant.

And Conference, It's easy to forget they had five leadership candidates. Not exactly the famous five.

They have left us to clear up their mess and I'm not just talking about the wallpaper in number ten.

The Tories have left us facing tough choices. And even tougher ones face families across Britain, struggling to make ends meet.

Look, I get it - balancing my own department's budgets brought me back to the old days when I had 60 quid to get me and my son through the week.

I know more than most that every pound counts.

So let me be blunt. We can't wish our problems away. We have to face them.

That's the difference between opposition and government.

But Conference things can get better, if we make the right choices. 

Sustained economic growth is the only way to improve the lives of working people.

And we are fixing the foundations to put Britain back on the path to growth.

No more talking, but doing. 80 days in government and we've been busy.

A devolution revolution. A bill to deliver new rights and protections for renters. Planning reform to get Britain building. A landmark review to fix our NHS. A child poverty taskforce. 100 new specialist officers to tackle criminals. An end to one-word Oftsted inspections. Ending the ban on onshore wind, and fines for bosses who pollute our waters.

Bills to kickstart GB energy and prevent another Liz Truss disastrous mini budget, put buses back in local hands, and bring rail into public ownership.

Conference, change has begun.

And Conference many of you know, for me that means: good jobs, secure homes, and strong communities. Fixing the foundations of a good life.

I know it only too well because they were the foundations on which I built a life for my own family.

The foundations of what made Britain great - and will do so again.

When I had my son as a single mum I wanted to work and had to figure out a way to do it.

My Nana said that as long as I put him to bed she'd have him in the evening and that was after she finished working hard all day herself, so that I could work nights as a home help.

I got the job. I loved it and loved the people I cared for, but it was tough at times.

I started on casual terms, and I wasn't paid for travel. Insecurity at work is the daily reality for so many.

Far too many people across our country know the world of work isn't working for them.

Now, you may have heard me mention that I was a trade unionist.

If you don't know that, I should probably tell you that Keir's dad was a toolmaker. And if you didn't know Keir's dad was a toolmaker, I probably need to tell you he's the Prime Minister.

But neither of us make any apology for where we came from or how we've ended up here.

So when I took on this job, I promised the biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation - nothing less than a New Deal for Working People.

And I can confirm today that the Employment Rights Bill will be tabled in Parliament next month.

They said we couldn't do it. Some tried to stop it in its tracks.

But after years of opposition we are on the verge of historic legislation.

To make work more secure and more family friendly. Go further and faster to close the gender pay gap. Ensure rights are enforced and trade unions strengthened.

That means repealing the Tories' anti-worker laws and new rights for union reps too.

A genuine living wage and sick pay for the lowest earners.

Banning exploitative zero hour contracts and unpaid internships.

Ending fire and rehire and we will bring in basic rights from day one on the job.

Conference, this is our Plan to Make Work Pay - coming to a workplace near you.

But 14 years of Tory chaos has not just left its mark on people's jobs, but on homes too.

Not enough are being built. The Tories failed to meet their targets year, after year, after year.

Michael Gove handed back nearly £2 billion to the Treasury in unspent housing funds. Mortgages have soared. Leaseholders are left at the mercy of eye-watering charges. Renters face crippling rent hikes in damp and mouldy homes. Homelessness is all around us.

The simple aspiration of a safe, secure and affordable home is further out of reach than ever and we can't go on like this. So change must begin at home.

We are tackling the Tories' housing emergency.

We will get Britain building and building decent homes for working people.

A new planning framework will unlock the door to affordable homes and provide the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation.

And Conference, our renters' bill will rebalance the relationship between tenant and landlord and end no fault evictions - for good.

Our long-term plan will free leaseholders from the tyranny of a mediaeval system.

And a cross-government taskforce will put Britain back on track to ending homelessness.

Whether you're a leaseholder, a tenant, a home-buyer or without somewhere to live - this government is on your side.

But my mission is not just to build houses, it is to build homes.

Because we cannot build at any cost. These new homes must be warm, secure and most importantly safe.

We will give families the security they need to have the best start in life.

I know first-hand the difference a decent home can make.

When I was growing up we didn't have a lot. But we had a safe and secure home. Today, not everyone does.

Working with the Prime Minister on the Grenfell Inquiry was the most sobering moment of my career: 72 lives lost, 18 children, all avoidable. A fatal failure of market and state. A tragedy that must never happen again.

It is completely unacceptable that we have thousands of buildings still wrapped in unsafe cladding seven years after Grenfell.

And that's why we will bring forward a new remediation action plan this Autumn to speed up the process and we'll pursue those responsible - without fear or favour.

This must lead to new, safer social housing for the future.

Under the Tories, new social housing plummeted.

We will reverse that tide - with an ambition to be build more social homes than we lose, within the first financial year of this Labour Government.

In my first weeks in office, I set out how we will start this council housing revolution.

But Conference, with Government support must come more responsibility.

This is why today I want to give you my promise that this Labour Government will take action to ensure all homes are decent and safe, and residents are treated with the respect they deserve.

And Conference, of course, many Housing Associations, councils and landlords do good by their tenants and I know how hard they've had it after 14 years under the Tories.

Which is why I will work in partnership with the sector to deliver the change.

I will clamp down on damp and mouldy homes by bringing in Awaab's Law in the social rented sector this autumn and we'll extend it to the private rented sector too.

We will consult and implement a new Decent Homes Standard for social and privately rented homes, to end the scandal of homes being unfit to live in.

We will also ensure social housing staff have the right skills and experience. And I will ensure 2.5 million housing association tenants in this country can hold their landlord to account for their high quality services and homes. So that repairs and complaints are handled faster, but more importantly, so social housing tenants are treated fairly.

I am under no illusion about the mountain we have to climb.

We all saw that this summer: violent extremists preyed on our communities and local councils were left picking up the pieces.

Local leadership is the foundation of strong communities.

That's why I have put local government back where it belongs, at the heart of my department's name and mission.

Because the best decisions are made by those with skin in the game.

When I worked in care, me and the home-helps joined the union because we knew we had a part to play in improving things.

We came together to work with management to deliver a service from 7am -10pm, seven days a week ,and provide flexibility for the  predominantly female workforce.

We proved we could boost productivity and provide an improved service to those we cared for as well as manage our own caring responsibilities outside of work.

And Keir and I are determined to end this ‘Whitehall knows best' approach and trust those with skin in the game.

The last Labour government created the London Mayor, the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Senedd and the Northern Ireland Assembly.

We will seize this moment and finally complete that irreversible shift in opportunity, power and wealth across our whole country.

It's how we can deliver real, sustained change for every region and Labour mayors have already proven it.

Buses under local control in Greater Manchester, £2 fares in West Yorkshire, Oxford Street regeneration in London, publicly-owned battery trains in Liverpool and opportunities for unemployed young people in the West Midlands.

Labour mayors have shown what is possible when Labour is in power.

And that's why I am giving mayors more powers over house building and planning, as well as transport and skills.

A new White Paper will map out how we will move power out of Whitehall.

I am delighted to announce today that we will move forward with two Investment Zones - creating high quality jobs in advanced manufacturing in the West Midlands and life sciences in West Yorkshire.

Just this week, I agreed eight devolution deals, all four corners of Yorkshire will now have a local champion.

New Mayors for Hull & East Yorkshire and Greater Lincolnshire.

Warwickshire, Surrey, Buckinghamshire, and Cornwall will get new powers over skills.

And today I am proud to announce the next step in our devolution revolution.

This government will change the future of the North of England, so Northerners will no longer be dictated to from Whitehall.

Conference, we will be the government to complete devolution in the North. 

The change will be irreversible and I will get it done.

As a proud Northerner this milestone is personal for me!

And Conference, it was the foundation of a decent home, secure work and a strong community that nurtured me.

The youth club on a Friday afternoon gave me somewhere to go, with a youth worker I could trust.

A sure start centre is where I met other mums and learned how to look after my new baby.

Conference, a community raised me. None of those people cast me aside or gave up on me.

And when I became a home help, suddenly it was my job to look after the people who had once looked after me - retired professors, teachers, nurses, police officers. They needed my care in the last years and days of their life. Care that they deserved. Care that it was my honour to provide.

I find myself once again with the opportunity to serve those people who never gave up on me.

On 4 July, the people entrusted us with the task of change. And Hope won.

Now is our moment, not just to say but to do.

Labour Governments of the past took on this same challenge, at a time when Britain desperately needed change.

They delivered a better Britain when the odds were stacked against them.

And that is exactly what this Labour government must deliver once again.

So Conference, let's get on with it. Thank you.