Sunak bids to knock Rachel Reeves off course in ‘desperate’ move – live

The government’s Supreme Court appeal over plans to remove some asylum seekers to Rwanda has begun at the UK’s highest court.

Sir James Eadie KC, for the Home Office, said: “The appeal is, at its heart, about the judgments made by government about the future conduct of a friendly foreign state – Rwanda.”

The barrister continued: “Both the Government and the Rwandan government were fully aware of the likely controversy of the arrangements that were made when the deal was signed.”

You can watch the proceedings live by following the link below:

Fewer than one in 10 British voters think Brexit has gone well, a new study has found.

Research by the think-tank UK In a Changing Europe (UKICE) found that just 9 per cent now say leaving the EU had been a success.

Less than half (44 per cent) of working-class voters who backed the Tories in 2019 say they will do so again at next year’s contest, the YouGov survey found.

David Lammy said Labour would “not surrender the hope of two states living side-by-side in peace” as he warned both Israelis and Palestinians are paying a “terrible price” after Hamas’s “indiscriminate” attacks.

Speaking at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool, the shadow foreign secretary said: “Labour utterly condemns Hamas’s appalling attack on Israel.

“There is never a justification for terrorism. Labour stands firmly in support of Israel’s right to defend itself, rescue hostages and protect its citizens.

“The hostages so cruelly taken, including children, should be released immediately and Hamas’s indiscriminate attacks set back the cause of peace – both Israelis and Palestinians paying a terrible price.

“There will not be a just and lasting peace until Israel is secure, Palestine is a sovereign state and both Israelis and Palestinians enjoy security, dignity and human rights.”

He added: “Though it may never have felt more distant, we will not surrender the hope of two states living side-by-side in peace.”

A Labour government cannot “categorically” rule out blocking Scottish legislation but would seek to repair relations with Holyrood, Ian Murray has said.

The shadow Scottish secretary said his party’s triumph against the SNP in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election showed voters wanted positive change with both governments working together.

He said a veto using Section 35 of the Scotland Act should never be a “first resort”, in reference to the UK Government’s block on gender reform laws.

You can watch the live stream by following the link below:

Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has been grilled about the appearance of the top Palestinian diplomat Husam Zomlot at the party’s conference.

Zomlot, the head of the Palestinian Mission to the UK, told CNN: “Israel knew that this was coming their way… It’s a consequence.” He is reportedly to attend a reception at the conference on Tuesday night alongside shadow foreign secretary David Lammy.

Asked about his comment, Ms Reeves told Sky News: “I’m very upset about those remarks. Israel, and the attacks on civilians, the festival goers, the children who have been taken hostage, it is completely unacceptable.

Asked if Mr Lammy should appear alongside the Palestinian diplomat, Ms Reeves said: “I don’t know what David’s schedule is, I don’t know whether this man is at our conference.”

Ms Reeves also said Jeremy Corbyn will “absolutely not” be welcomed back as a Labour MP. Asked about Labour MP Apsana Begum posing with Palestinian activists, Ms Reeves said: “I don’t think that Labour could be any clearer about our support for the right of Israel to defend itself.”

Asked about the cheering for a Palestinian Youth Movement activist who praised the “Palestinian resistance” at a World Transformed event in Liverpool, Ms Reeves told Times Radio: “I’ve got no time for that. I want to see a Palestinian state existing alongside a safe and secure Israel.”

Rachel Reeves said Labour will cut regulations to unlock £50bn a year in business investment and grow the economy, but “won’t crash markets like Liz Truss”.

The shadow chancellor is setting out plans to boost infrastructure spending in a bid to “get Britain building again”.

Adam Forrest and Jon Stone:

Keir Starmer has told business leaders he is primed for an election as soon as May, as he warned that the Tories will drag the campaign into the gutter, Adam Forrest reports.

Speaking at business forum at the Labour conference, the party leader said: “It will either be May or October, and our team is ready for May because I don’t think anybody would rule out May.”

Starmer added: “In terms of how it will be run, I think it will unfortunately descend into a place which isn’t about big politics. I think it will go low from the government’s point of view.”

Pointing to Rishi Sunak’s watering down of net zero, he said the government was “making decisions in the short-term interest of opening up divides for the purpose of an election.”

He added: “If we do come into government, you will be coming into government with us”.

Jeremy Corbyn will “absolutely not” be welcomed back as a Labour MP, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has said.

Archie Mitchell reports: The former Labour leader was stripped of the whip in Parliament over his response to a report on antisemitism, although he remains a party member.

Unlike the party leadership, Mr Corbyn has not explicitly condemned Hamas for the terrorist atrocity in Israel.

He said he condemns “any acts of violence” but on the “terrible situation in Israel and Palestine… the way to end that, I think, is to end the occupation of Palestine by Israel”.

Asked if she could see a time when he would come back into the Labour fold, Ms Reeves told LBC Radio: “Absolutely not. Jeremy Corbyn is no longer a Labour MP because of the antisemitism that he allowed to take root in the Labour Party.

“And I’m so proud that we’ve got, in Keir Starmer, a leader who stands squarely alongside Israel at their moment of need, and has rooted out antisemitism from my party, the Labour Party.”