Summary

  • Theresa May delivers closing speech to Conservative conference

  • She pledges to build a "fairer" and "united Britain"

  • Diane James resigns as UKIP leader after 18 days as leader

  • Nigel Farage returns to role as UKIP's interim leader

  • Home Secretary defends tougher immigration rules for businesses

Live Reporting

Aiden James, Esther Webber and Pippa Simm

  1. Theresa May: Invoking Article 50 will give clarity

    Here are the key lines from the prime minister's interview with ITV this morning: 

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  2. May: I went in to politics to make a difference

    Today Programme
    BBC Radio 4

    Theresa May - who is doing the media rounds ahead of her speech to the party faithful tomorrow - is being interview on the Today programme.

    She's asked about an old friend's recollection that she had ambitions to be prime minister as a teenager. "I'm not sure I dreamt of the job four decades ago," she says. Pressed further, she says she remembers that she wanted to become an MP from a "very young age", because "I wanted to make a difference".

  3. Theresa May: We want more British doctors

    BBC Breakfast

    The prime minister has given interviews to several breakfast programmes this morning, telling the BBC: 

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    She also had this insight: 

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  4. Government to increase number of British doctors in NHS, says May

    BBC Breakfast

    Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt will announce in a speech later £100m to increase the number of medical school places.

    Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Prime Minister Theresa May said there would be benefits to doctors and patients.

    We want to see more British doctors in the NHS. The NHS is having to ensure that doctors can come in from overseas in order to ensure there are the numbers of doctors we need and there are people here in the UK who may want to train as doctors who aren't able to because of the limits there have been on the numbers. I think it's absolutely right that we're doing this. It will mean that we will see more British doctors in the NHS."

  5. Nick Clegg calls for World Cup boycott

    The UK's football teams should boycott the 2018 World Cup in Russia because of the country's alleged involvement in the bombing of civilians in Syria's brutal civil war, former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has said.

    Mr Clegg told ITV's The Agenda: 

    We can weep at the pictures and have endless debates with the UN but the fundamental problem is that there is no cost to Russia. It might be a silly thing, it is ludicrous that Russia is going to hold the World Cup in 2018, what world are we in? I think if Fifa had any moral mettle to it at all it will now say that Russia has forfeited any right to host any international tournament. I'm calling for Fifa to cancel Russia - if they don't, if Russia is behaving like this, of course we shouldn't turn up."

  6. Theresa May - Brexit talks won't be 'plain sailing'

    The Prime Minister, doing a round of media interviews this morning, has said that she expects the negotiations for Britain to leave the EU, "won't be plain sailing" and said she expected there will be "bumps in the road".

    Speaking on ITV's Good Morning Britain, Theresa May said that the government was determined to make a success of the negotiations and would deliver a good deal for the UK.

    Mrs May said that it was important to set out the government's plan to trigger Article 50 by the end of March 2017, "to give people more certainly" and to ensure a smoother process into the negotiations.

    When asked if she had risked showing her hand by announcing the date, Mrs May said:

    I have to trigger at some point, and it's important to give that certainty, and British people recognise that we needed to have time to prepare for those negotiations, but they voted to leave and we have to have time to put that in to practise and that's exactly what we are going to do."

    We also have to focus on the future. This is not just about leaving the EU, It's about the relationships we have around the globe... the countries actively saying to the UK, 'we want to have a relationship with you we want to have a trade deal with you' and we have to grasp those opportunities."

  7. The day ahead at the Conservative conference

    Tuesday in Birmingham has two themes - "celebrating the union", with speeches from the Scottish, Welsh and Northern Ireland secretaries. That gets under way at 10:30. Then at 11:00 it's "a society that works for everyone", featuring Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, Justice Secretary Liz Truss and Home Secretary Amber Rudd.  

  8. Momentum vice-chair sacked over remarks

    The vice-chairwoman of the Labour left-wing grassroots group Momentum is sacked amid a row over comments she made about anti-Semitism.

    Read More

  9. Complex and difficult negotiations

    One of the questions about Brexit (and I know there are thousands of them) is how is Wales going to have an influence on the decisions over the next two years?

    Read More

  10. Listen: Did Cabinet discuss when to trigger Article 50?

    Radio 4 PM programme

    Theresa May has announced she will trigger Article 50 - which starts the process of leaving the EU - by the end of March next year. 

    But was that decision discussed in Cabinet? Eddie Mair asked Conservative Chairman Patrick McLoughlin.

  11. Ashcroft 'to donate to Conservative Party again'

    Lord Ashcroft 'to donate to Conservative Party again'

    Former Conservative Party treasurer Lord Ashcroft has told the BBC he is considering giving money to the party again.

    But the peer - who co-authored a controversial book about former ex-PM David Cameron - said he would be donating smaller amounts through the Leader's Group, rather than large individual sums.

    He told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg at Conservative conference that he hoped the era of big donors was over.

  12. Conference recap

    Here's your afternoon round-up following day two of the Conservative conference:

  13. Single market exit warning by minister

    David Jones

    UK membership of the European Union's tariff-free single market is "probably unlikely", a Brexit minister has said.

    Clwyd West Conservative MP David Jones said the government wants to achieve access to the single market "on the best possible terms".

    He spoke after Prime Minister Theresa May told the Tory conference the UK was going to be a "sovereign country" with freedom over immigration decisions.

    The single market requires people can live and work freely across the EU.

    Read more.

  14. Pound falls as May indicates Brexit date

    Sterling falls to its lowest level against the dollar since the beginning of July after Theresa May outlines the timetable for starting Brexit negotiations.

    Read More

  15. Theresa May 'still wants to engage with Scotland'

    Theresa MayGetty Images

    The prime minister still wants to engage with the Scottish government ahead of the UK's Brexit negotiations, the Scottish secretary has insisted.

    But David Mundell warned against using Brexit as a pretext for a "rehash" of the independence referendum.

    In a conference speech on Sunday, Theresa May referred to "divisive nationalists" who she accused of seeking to "undermine" the UK. The reference was widely interpreted as being an attack on the SNP.

    The Scottish government's Brexit minister, Mike Russell, said Mrs May's language had been "inflammatory" and designed to reject the involvement of the devolved administrations, including Scotland, in Brexit talks.

    Read more.

  16. Southern Rail's offer to union explained

    Richard Westcott
    Transport correspondent

    This is Southern Rail's attempt to bring the bitter dispute to a head. The company has given the RMT union an ultimatum. To either accept a revised deal by midday Thursday, including a £2,000 one-off sweetener for all staff involved, or Southern will start rolling out controversial changes anyway.

    The company wants to alter the role of the guard on the train, so they no longer open and close the doors. It says no-one will be out of pocket and it's common practice on other trains. But the union claims it degrades safety and fears it will cost jobs in the end.

    Guards will get a letter this week, which should have a date included. If they don't sign a new contract by that date, it seems they'll no longer have a job.

    The RMT raised the stakes recently when it announced 14 days of strikes starting next week and ending in December. Now Southern has replied in kind. Stuck in the middle, passengers on the country's most unreliable train line must be wondering when it will end.

  17. Transport secretary says Southern Rail offer to RMT is 'a good deal'

    BBC News Channel

    Southern RailPA

    The transport secretary has welcomed an offer from Southern Rail to settle its long-running dispute with the RMT union over the role of conductors on trains. The company has said it will press ahead with changes if workers do not sign up to the new post of "on-board supervisor" by midday on Thursday.

    The new offer included a lump sum payment of £2,000 to conductors to be paid once the dispute is settled and its plans are fully implemented, guarantees on conductors' jobs until 2021, above-inflation pay increases for the next two years and guaranteed levels of overtime.

    "I think most people would think that's a good deal," Chris Grayling told the BBC News Channel. "I really hope they'll accept that."

    But RMT general secretary Mick Cash said:

    Jobs, safety and access on Southern Rail services are not for sale for £2,000. This dispute has never been about money, it is about guaranteeing that there is a second, safety-critical member of staff on board the current Southern rail services."

  18. Government 'simply adjusting course temporarily', says cabinet minister

    BBC News Channel

    Chris Grayling

    Transport Secretary Chris Grayling tells BBC News that the government is "following a clear road to balancing our nation's books".

    However, he adds, if you discover an obstacle in the road "you adjust your course".

    Brexit "will provide new opportunities for this country", he insists, but "there will be challenges going through the Brexit process".

    "I think the markets will look at our track record in government," he says, adding: "We are simply adjusting course temporarily."

  19. Is government spending on roads and railways a good idea?

    Ian Pollock
    Business reporter

    Philip HammondGetty Images

    The Conservative government seems to be taking a new tack.

    It is already planning to spend lots of money on big projects like HS2, a new Hinkley nuclear power station, and maybe even a new airport runway in south east England.

    Now the new chancellor, Philip Hammond, is in favour of spending more money on houses and transport.

    It seems that spending on infrastructure, as part of a plan of economic management, is back in vogue.

    So, BBC news asked some experts to ponder the vital question: is this a sure-fire way to boost the economy, or can it be a waste of money?

    Read more

  20. Brexit: NI will be 'collateral damage' says Martin McGuinness

    Martin McGuinness

    Northern Ireland's deputy first minister has said the British government is on a "collision course" with the European Union as a result of the Brexit vote.

    Martin McGuinness told a news conference on Monday that Northern Ireland would be "collateral damage" in the time ahead.

    Prime Minister Theresa May said on Sunday that she would trigger Article 50 by the end of March 2017.

    But Mr McGuinness said Northern Ireland would suffer economically and politically.

    Read more.