Housing Secretary Angela Rayner received an emotional standing ovation as she returned to the main stage at Labour's annual conference in Liverpool. Appointed back to the heart of government by Andy Burnham in July, she told delegates: "I don't often cry, but nearly. It's so good to be back."
Return to the limelight
Ms Rayner's absence weighed heavily on last year's gathering after her resignation from Keir Starmer's top team amid a row over unpaid stamp duty on her Brighton home. Now back in the Cabinet with a prime spot address, she paid tribute to those who supported her during her year on the backbenches.
She said: "I want to start by saying a big thank you to everyone here. Your work got us into government, we wouldn't be here without you, and I certainly wouldn't be here without you."
Unfinished business on housing
Ms Rayner, cleared of deliberate wrongdoing earlier this year, said she was back to deliver on "unfinished business". She promised to confront the "scandal faced by millions of leaseholders who have found their dream of home ownership turned into a nightmare."
She said the government was "ending the injustice of fleeceholds" and tackling ground rents, citing leaseholders charged £250 for permission to own a pet and £400 to change their front door. She announced plans to cap "outrageous administration and permission fees" and legislate for independent regulation of estate agents, letting agents and property management agents.
Crackdown and jibe at Farage
Ms Rayner promised local leaders "more powers" to tackle homelessness and bring empty homes back into use, saying: "Sweeping away Tory barriers that hampered our local leaders from taking action."
She also used her speech to joke about Reform leader Nigel Farage's Cameo videos and £72 million in donations from crypto billionaires, saying: "If he'll sing you happy birthday for seventy quid, just imagine what he'd do for seventy million."
