Truss has restated her commitment to the Rwanda scheme, to transport people who travel to the UK via small boats to the east African country on a one-way ticket.

She says the government will be "beefing up our border force" as part of the policy.

The PM adds that Home Secretary Suella Braverman will be bringing forward legislation to "make sure that no European judge can overrule us" - a reference to the European Court of Human Rights preventing the departure of the first flights to Rwanda earlier in the summer.

Liz Truss says the government is trying to make the country more safe and secure.

But she tells the conference the West did not do enough, and became too dependent on authoritarian regimes for cheap energy.

"We will make sure this never happens again," she says.

The prime minister vows to open more gas fields in the UK in order to deliver more renewables.

Truss says that "the government took decisive action to tackle the energy crisis, why we're pushing ahead with our plan for growth which will level up our country.

"I know this is what people want to see: growth means we can afford great services - schools, police and the NHS."

Speaking about her "fantastic" deputy PM and health secretary Therese Coffey, Truss says her colleague will "deliver for patients so they can expect a GP appointment within two weeks.

"She will ensure that those who need urgent care will be seen on the same day and she will get ambulances out there faster.

"She will improve A&E - and she will bust the Covid backlog. That's not all! She will bolster social care, so everyone gets the care they need."

Coffey, in the audience, claps and nods.

Truss has been laying out some more of her key priorities, like getting people access to affordable childcare, enabling them to buy their own home, and offering more superfast broadband internet connections.

She says the government will help people build their own businesses and get a mobile phone signal "wherever you are in the country."

Turning to Brexit, Liz Truss says the UK should be seizing new-found freedoms.

"By the end of the year all EU red tape will be consigned to history", the prime minister vows.

She adds that instead "we will ensure regulation is pro-business and pro-growth".

"We will face down the separatists who threaten to pull apart our precious union, our family," Truss says to further applause.

The prime minister has spoken about her proposal for "investment zones" to "level up across the country".

Liz Truss says the government is "going to be inspired by great hubs of industry" to set up the zones to boost economic growth.

"Now is the time to harness the power of enterprise, to transform our country and ensure our greatest days lie ahead," she says to applause from the audience.

The prime minister vows to drive up "high performance" to build a new era for the United Kingdom.

She says: "We're taking a new approach based on what's worked before.

"We face barriers to growth like militant unions, nationalised industries and outdated city regulation.

"Now we must break down the barriers to growth built up in our system over decades.

"Decisions take too long; burdens on businesses are too high."

"We are seeing rising interest rates worldwide in the wake of Putin's war and Covid," Truss says.

"The Federal Reserve has been hiking rates in America and has signalled more rises to come. Inflation is high across the world's major economies.

"We will do what we can as a government to support homeowners, such as cutting stamp duty, but it's right that interest rates are independently decided by the Bank of England.

"The chancellor and the governor [of the Bank of England] will keep closely coordinating our monetary and fiscal policies."

Referring to her U-turn on abolishing the top rate of tax, the PM says "I get it and I have listened".

She repeats her assertion that her plan to get rid of the 45p rate on top earners had become a "distraction".

But Truss defends tax cuts generally as being good for economic growth, saying "we must always be careful with taxpayers money".

She adds the UK is currently facing "extraordinary times" and the government will bring down debt as a proportion of national income.

Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent

"Whenever there is change, there is disruption".

Liz Truss is making it clear not everything will be plain sailing as she tries to change economic course.

The question is; how will that go down with the public given the impact the disruption of the last few weeks has had.

Could it mean higher interest rates? Higher mortgage payments in the short term?

Ministers have been reluctant to give detail about how much disruption they are prepared to put up with and what it might look like for voters.

Truss says that by cutting stamp duty her government is helping first-time buyers.

She says: "We're also helping 31 million working people by cutting the basic rate of income tax."

Liz Truss emphasises that the Conservatives will always be the party of low taxes.

"Cutting taxes is the right thing to do morally and economically," she says, despite recent furore over some of her plans.

"The state spends the people's money," she says. "When the government plays too big a role, people feel smaller."

The prime minister says the UK needs to be internationally competitive to attract more talented people into the country.

She says it's about "putting up a sign that Britain is open for business".

Truss says: "We need to step up. As the last few weeks have shown, it will be difficult.

"Whenever things change, there is disruption - but everyone will benefit from the result: a growing economy and a better future. That is what we have a clear plan to deliver.

"I have three priorities for our economy: growth, growth and growth."

Truss says the political debate has been dominated by the distribution of a "limited economic pie" for too long.

She adds "instead we need to grow the pie so everyone gets a bigger slice", to applause from the audience.

The PM also says she is determined to take a new approach and break the UK out of a high-tax, low-growth pattern.

But Truss also notes the scale of the challenge is "immense".

Liz Truss talks about growing up in Paisley and in Leeds during the 1980s and 1990s.

"I know what it is like to live somewhere which isn't feeling the benefits of economic growth," she says.

"I've seen the boarded up shops. I've seen people with no hope turning to drugs.

"Low growth means lower wages, fewer opportunities and it means our country is falling behind other countries.

"We must level up our country in a Conservative way."

The PM says the UK is doing more than any other country in Europe to protect people from the energy crisis.

She emphasises it was the biggest part of the mini-budget revealed by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng 11 days ago.

After the disruption, Truss gets a standing ovation and says: "Later on in my speech I will talk about the anti-growth coalition - but I think they arrived a bit early.

We'll get on to them in a few minutes," she says to laughter.

Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent

Wow. Liz Truss has just been interrupted by protestors holding up a banner saying: "Who voted for this?"

It's been a question some have been asking; does the prime minister have a mandate for the radical policies she is pursuing.

Even some senior Tory MPs like Nadine Dorries have been suggesting the new government should go to the electorate to get backing for its plans.

Senior ministers I've spoken to have insisted an election isn't needed - and argued people don't want it.

The protestors were bundled out by security.

Liz Truss's comments were met by loud cheers - but her speech was then interrupted by protesters shouting: "who voted for fracking?"

A Greenpeace banner is unfurled in an apparent protest against the government's actions on fracking and the environment.

The protesters are removed from the room, with delegates booing them.