Kuenssberg repeats her first question: "Do you see the battle with Reform on the same terms as the prime minister?"

Cleverly says Reform is "very, very good at headline-grabbing" and takes aim at the BBC for being "very compliant when it comes to covering what they say."

But he adds that the party's "the policies fall apart" when you look at the details.

"[They have] no plan for delivery".

After a brief discussion with the panel, shadow housing secretary James Cleverly is now in the hot seat.

Kuenssberg begins by asking if he sees the battle with Reform UK as, in the prime minister's words, a "battle for the soul" of the country.

He doesn't answer the question, but says Labour is desperately trying to reclaim credibility on the issue of immigration.

Cleverly claims that Labour opposed him when he tried to tighten rules on who could work in the UK during his time as home secretary.

"This is a day late and a dollar short," he says. "No one is buying it."

Chris Mason
Political editor

This is a conference season with a recurring word: patriotism.

Reform UK and the Liberal Democrats offered their own takes on it.

Now Labour are leaning into it in Liverpool.

Sir Keir Starmer says "patriotic renewal" as he puts it "is fixing the problems we inherited and changing the country".

He describes the UK as a "beautiful, tolerant diverse country", in what he believes is contrasting with Reform’s worldview.

"Reform do not believe in that country. They want to tear that country apart," he tells Laura. There’ll be plenty more where this came from in the next few days.

Image source, PA Media

"What if the problem is you?" Kuenssberg asks.

The prime minister says that he will be judged at the next election on three things - living standards, the NHS and if people feel safe and secure.

I will be "rightly judged" at the end of the five-year mandate, he says.

Kuenssberg then asks Starmer: "What are you saying to your critics?"

"We have got the fight of our lives ahead of us, because we have got to beat Reform," he says.

The interview is now over - next up, it's shadow housing secretary James Cleverly.

The interview turns to the topic of Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester.

Kuenssberg puts it to the PM that Burnham is not the first to say there are issues with Starmer's leadership.

"Comments about leaders and leadership are part and parcel of being in politics. It is the bread and butter of politics," he says.

"Every leader gets it. It's in the job description. I don't focus on that. I focus on what we've got to get done."

Kuenssberg now asks Starmer on whether he would rule out scrapping the legal right for children with special educational needs to get extra help.

Starmer responds by saying: "I don't want to take away rights - but we do need to reform this system".

She pushes back and asks again: "So you might scrap that legal right?"

Starmer says that at the moment special needs "doesn't work for most people", before adding that this was topic was the number one concern for MPS.

Kuenssberg asks the prime minister on his governments tax plans, ahead of Chancellor Rachel Reeves' Budget in November.

She asks him directly whether the PM will rule out raising VAT.

Starmer responds by highlighting what he says are a record number of jobs, adding that he came into politics to change things.

He's pressed again on VAT.

"The manifesto stands," he replies, adding that more will come out in the November Budget.

Labour's general election manifesto last year ruled out increasing rates of income tax, national insurance and VAT., external

Starmer is asked whether he thinks Reforms plan to deport migrants is an "immoral policy".

"Yes," he says.

"We are a proud, tolerant country," adding that people have been coming to the UK "for centuries".

He goes on to say it's one thing to "remove illegal migrants - I'm up for that," but it's a "completely different thing, to reach into people who are lawfully here and start removing them."

"The fight with Reform is different," Starmer says.

Kuenssberg then asks if the PM thinks it is a racist policy.

"I do think that it is a racist policy. I do think it is immoral. It needs to be called out for what it is," Starmer says.

But he stops short of saying that Reform UK is trying to appeal to racist voters.

"I think there are plenty of people who vote Reform or thinking of voting Reform who are frustrated," he adds.

We'll bring you more on what Reform has proposed shortly.

The conversation now moves on the Starmer's plans for digital ID which he announced on Friday - more on those plans here.

Kuenssberg asks him what makes him think employers will ask for ID - and if it will make any difference to addressing illegal working and tackling illegal migration as the prime minister has suggested.

Starmer says that these IDs will allow employers to know who is working and enforce rules.

"We all acknowledge that there is a problem here and that we need to deal with it", he adds.

Kuenssberg asks Starmer whether he has ever been to an asylum hotel.

Starmer says he has and adds that he wants to bring forward his government's 2029 deadline to close them to asylum seekers.

"If you leave tens of thousands of people and don't process their claims, they are in a place where they can't go backwards or forwards," he says.

On the topic of taxpayer-funded taxis for asylum seekers which the BBC uncovered in an investigation, Starmer says: "It's not fair, I understand that and we will stop it."

Starmer says that he is arguing against Reform because the party wants to "tear the country apart", referring to the party's plans to scrap Indefinite Leave to Remain.

Kuenssberg asks him when he realised the political left was "getting it wrong on immigration".

Starmer says he believed that 10 years ago but he side steps the question, and insists there is work to do but Labour only came to power one year ago.

He says the party is taking measures to tackle illegal immigration and there have already been "35,000 returns" since coming to power.

Starmer is then asked what he will be talking about over the next few days at Labour's Party conference. Kuenssberg refers back to the prime minister's comments earlier this week where he set out his diving lines with Reform UK and described Nigel Farage's party as the "enemy", before asking what his phrase "patriotic renewal" means.

Starmer says it's about getting the economy working, wealth creation, and fixing all parts of the country, such as the NHS, adding that it needs to be made "fit for the future".

Starmer says they need to change the relationship between the state and the people and bring the whole country with them.

Kuenssberg's first question for the prime minister this morning: How much trouble are you in?

Starmer responds by listing what he sees as his government's achievements bringing down NHS waiting lists, extra childcare funding and defence.

"But we've got to do more," he says. "We inherited a complete mess."

Kuenssberg pushes Starmer, referring to recent polls which suggest Labour are struggling.

"We will be judged on the next election on whether we have improved living standards," Starmer says.

He adds that he understands the public are "frustrated" at the time taken to deliver the change Labour promised - and there is "a lot of hard work to do".

Today's headlines are dominated by England's win at the Women's Rugby World Cup yesterday.

The Sunday Telegraph declares "English Roses rule the world", alongside a report that Chancellor Rachel Reeves is "facing a revolt", with ministers "begging" her to break her "iron-clad" fiscal rules to allow more spending.

It's a similar image on the front of the Observer, with a picture of England captain Zoe Aldcroft holding the trophy aloft.

The Sunday Express leads with warnings that Nato "must demonstrate strength and unity in the face of Moscow's escalating provocations". War will be "inevitable", the paper claims, noting there is "little to deter" Russia risking a clash with the alliance.

While the build-up to the Labour party conference tomorrow leads the Sunday Times, which has spoken to the prime minister.

We have a full review of what's making the headlines this morning here.

This week's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg is now under way.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will be in the hot seat fielding questions in just a few short minutes.

As a reminder, you can follow the programme by clicking watch live at the top of this page, or follow here for text updates.

Image source, EPA

The government will underwrite the £1.5bn loan to Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) from a commercial bank, arguing it will protect jobs around the UK.

The loan is designed to help the company support its suppliers after it suffered a cyber-attack last month that forced the British carmaker's production lines to come to a weeks-long halt.

JLR shutdown has had a domino effect on its many suppliers – most of them small businesses – with worries some could go out of business.

The company operates the largest supply chain in the UK's car making industry, employing around 150,000 people.

No cars have been built this month, and the company has stopped placing orders with its 700 suppliers.

Image source, Getty Images

New Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has suggested that the international community is on the verge of securing a peace deal to end the war in Gaza.

In an interview with the Guardian, external yesterday ahead of the Labour Party Conference, she says leaders at the UN summit - from which she has just returned from - have “reached a moment where the world wants to end this war”.

This followed on from US President Donald Trump's indication that a peace deal was within sight.

While Cooper urged Israel to "urgently change course", she stopped short of saying that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza, explaining that the government's position was down to a legal process.

The UN commission of inquiry has found Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, which the Israeli foreign ministry rejected as "false".

Image source, Getty Images

Ahead of Labour's conference, the new Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood says she is looking to change the law around claiming indefinite leave to remain.

Speaking to the Sun on Sunday, external, Mahmood describes legal migration as a "good thing", with the UK having "always welcomed people who want to come and work", but caveated that migrants should be making a "contribution to their wider community".

"I am looking at how to make sure that settlement in our country - long term settlement, Indefinite Leave to Remain - is linked not just to the job you are doing, the salary you get, the taxes you pay, [but] also the wider contribution you are making to our communities," she explains.

Starmer's interview this morning comes days after he announced his plans for digital IDs. He says they will ensure the country's "borders are more secure", but the plans have already faced criticism from opposition parties.

So far, we now know:

• It will include a name, date of birth, nationality or residency status, and a photo
• You won't have to carry IDs around
• You'll never be asked to produce it - other than when proving a right to work in the UK
• The ID will be on people's phones - similar to contactless cards
• It will be compulsory for anyone looking to work in the UK

What we still don't know:

• When exactly the scheme will be introduced - the government says it will be mandatory "by the end of the Parliament"
• Whether the card will include people's address - this will be considered in the government's consultation
• What those without smartphones will use - the government says it's working on this element

Image source, PA Media

Also on the show this morning is the shadow housing secretary, James Cleverly.

Cleverly returned to the front bench in July as part of a reshuffle of Kemi Badenoch’s senior team. He was Angela Rayner's counterpart until her resignation earlier this month.

The Braintree MP held a number of ministerial roles when the Conservatives were in government, including as home secretary and foreign secretary.

He briefly became the frontrunner in the race to replace Rishi Sunak during last year's Conservative leadership contest but was surprisingly knocked out in the final ballot of MPs, coming third behind Badenoch and Robert Jenrick.