We were promised Angela Rayner at 11:25 BST, but it appears she's running a bit late, as delegates speak about the process for deciding which topics should be debated this week.

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Angela Rayner will be the first shadow cabinet member to speak to conference - a chance for her to fire up activists for the week to come.

Traditionally, the deputy leader also closes the conference with a tub-thumping address on the final day.

We already know she'll be talking about housing, and pledge to "get tough" with developers over obligations to build social homes.

Sam Francis
Political reporter

The Labour conference is now in full swing in Liverpool. Initial speeches are under way from the podium.

Only yesterday, the Exhibition Centre in Liverpool was deserted, except for builders putting up exhibition stands, Labour party officials and the journalists covering them.

But now the stands are buzzing with activity and the main hall is filled with political enthusiasts and party figures, catching up.

And, so far, tensions within the party that so-often makes headlines has not materialised.

As the work of the annual conference gets under way, the party will be hoping this sense of energy and apparent unity lasts the week.

Chris Mason
Political editor

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As Labour arrives in Liverpool for what could be its final conference before a general election, leader Sir Keir Starmer is grappling with how to convert a commanding poll lead into power.

"One of the most ambitious politicians I have ever met."

That was the verdict on Keir Starmer, before he had even been elected as an MP, by the veteran political journalist Michael Crick, quoted in a biography of the Labour leader by Lord Ashcroft.

The man who might be prime minister, who first arrived in the Commons in 2015 aged 52, is obsessed with winning.

Those who know him well say he detests opposition.

Read more from Chris here

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As we've been reporting, the Labour party conference gets under way in Liverpool today. He're a quick look at who will be speaking today:

• 11:25 BST Shadow deputy prime minister Angela Rayner
• 11:45 Labour's general secretary David Evans
• 12:15 Shadow secretary of state for women and equalities Anneliese Dodds
• 14:00 Shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden

You'll be able to watch Rayner's speech on this page.

Earlier, Transport Secretary Mark Harper was pressed on how the government will spend the £36bn saved by cancelling the northern leg of HS2.

• He condemned yesterday's attack on Israel as an “appalling act of terrorism” that needs to be “called out across the world”
• He was confident a Labour government would be able to boost economic growth "within months" of taking office, which would help pay for public services
• He said NHS staff would work overtime if paid "properly", to help deliver his party's plan for 2m more hospital appointments a year

• He said a Labour government would aim to deliver 1.5m new houses over five years in office
• And he said his party would also “reverse” the government’s Rwanda asylum plan - even if it was working

Earlier, Derbyshire challenged Starmer on him - and Labour - changing various policy positions. Here are some examples:

• Labour wanted to end charitable status for private schools, which exempts some from paying taxes. It has since dropped that pledge, but says it will remove other tax breaks if it wins the next general election
• The party said it would scrap university tuition fees in England - but in May, Starmer said the party was “likely to move on from that commitment”
• Labour had wanted to get rid of the two-child limit on benefit claims - but that was shelved, despite causing friction in the party
• The so-called "Green Prosperity Plan“ which involved borrowing £28bn a year until 2030 to invest in green energy schemes was scaled back in June, with shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves saying the country's "financial stability had to come first"

How much could be raised by ending non-dom status?published at 10:01 British Summer Time 8 October 2023

10:01 BST 8 October 2023

As you've just seen, Starmer said Labour’s plan to cut NHS waiting lists would be funded by ending non-dom status.

The status allows people living in the UK to avoid paying UK tax on money they earn elsewhere. Almost 80,000 people, external have non-dom status.

How much money would be raised is uncertain because we do not know how many of these people would decide to live elsewhere as a result.

That would mean that the Treasury would lose taxes currently raised by their activities and spending in the UK.

Research from the London School of Economics, external estimated that £3.2bn a year would be raised, based on fewer than 100 people deciding to leave the country.

Sir Keir Starmer said £1.1bn per year from scrapping non-dom tax status would be used to provide 40,000 out-of-hours appointments each week. The money has also been earmarked to pay for breakfast clubs in primary schools in England.

You can read more about non-dom status here.

As the programme ends, here's a clip of Keir Starmer defending his plan for more NHS weekend working.

"Why would a doctor or nurse switch from that higher [private sector] pay to work for less for at the weekends in the NHS?" Derbyshire asks.

'Don't know' and 'not sure' might be an opportunity for Starmerpublished at 09:58 British Summer Time 8 October 2023

09:58 BST 8 October 2023

Henry Zeffman
Chief political correspondent

As we reported earlier, Sir Keir Starmer was presented with a word cloud by Victoria Derbyshire, showing what words and phrases voters associate with him.

He might as well have been presented with a blank canvas.

“Nothing”, “don’t know,” “not sure,” and “no idea” were among the most prominent verdicts, three and a half years after Starmer became leader of the opposition.

That is both a challenge and an opportunity for Starmer.

The challenge is to provide more detail on what the public can expect from a Labour government.

Starmer will try to flesh out his vision of Labour in office this week, but is likely to disappoint those in his party who want a string of bold policies.

Starmer may also need more definition to his offer in order to rebut the Conservative argument that, having served under Jeremy Corbyn then booted him out of the party, he has no fixed principles.

But there is also a clear opportunity for Starmer here. Compare his word cloud to the one Rishi Sunak was presented with last week.

“Rich people,” “rich”, “the rich” and “wealth” were most prominent for the prime minister.

Starmer and his team will be delighted if they can make it to the start of the general election campaign - when many voters will be paying close attention to him for the first time - without negative perceptions of him already at the front of people’s minds. In other words, a blank canvas might be pretty good at this point.

If you have been affected by child sexual abuse, or sexual abuse or violence, details of help and support are available at bbc.co.uk/actionline, or you can call for free, at any time to hear recorded information on 0800 077 077.

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Derbyshire now asks Steve Coogan about playing Jimmy Savile.

Coogan says he “thought long and hard” before taking the role, and says the drama has to “justify itself”.

He says the show is a “lightning rod” for people like Sam to reach out to people.

“It’s quite a burden, quite a responsibility for me as an actor," says Coogan.

“It’s a fine balancing actor how I’m going to portray him. I can’t portray him as a pantomime villain."

Coogan was worried if he played Savile “too grotesque” it might be triggering to some people.

On the other hand, he says, showing that Savile “had charisma” could be problematic as well.

It was like “walking a tightrope,” he says.

Derbyshire asks Sam Brown about the criticism levelled at the show.

Brown says some people do not want to see a dramatisation of Savile because “it’s not comfortable to see”.

“The abuse we went through, that was not comfortable, that was not easy,” she says.

Sam adds that people "seem to think abuse is a rare occurrence - it’s not".

"To close your mind off to something you learn from, I find that difficult to understand."

Next on the show is an interview with Steve Coogan about his portrayal of Jimmy Savile, and Sam Brown, who is a survivor of Savile's abuse.

If you are watching the programme stream you may find some of the details discussed distressing.

Derbyshire now asks Harper why some transport plans that were already announced, or indeed built, had been reannounced this week.

Harper talks about needing to provide funding for transport projects, even if they were already proposed.

He calls it a "well worked up" plan which didn't have the funds available until the second phase of HS2 was cancelled.

Harper is now asked about which local transport projects will be funded after the cancellation of the northern and eastern legs of HS2.

Specifically, he is asked about a government document that said money from the cancelled project would fund a mass transit system for Bristol, and the reopening of the Leamside Line in north-east England.

He says decisions on how the money is spent will be decided locally, rather than "being taken at Westminster" - calling the projects in the document "examples" of how the money could be spent.

Derbyshire is now speaking to Transport Secretary Mark Harper.

He begins by saying the government is “unequivocally supporting Israel”.

“We will support them in whatever they decide to do to defend their country against terrorism,” he says.

Before we move to Transport Secretary Mark Harper, Derbyshire questions one of the panel - the Guardian editor Katharine Viner.

She is asked about the criticism she's faced for coverage of trans rights - including from former writer Hadley Freeman, who has criticised the paper since leaving for the Times.

Derbyshire says: "Freeman said she wasn't allowed to write about Mermaids, which is a charity that supports trans children, or interview people who some call 'gender critical'".

"Suzanne Moore says she felt bullied by some colleagues and not supported by management", Derbyshire continues. "Do you - as editor-in-chief - take responsibility for that?"

"I don't recognise that characterisation in any case," Viner says.

"I think if you read what is published in the Guardian on the issue of trans rights and gender critical feminism, rather than what people say on Twitter, I think you'd find a much more pluralistic range of views."

She says she thinks the Guardian represents more views than in other news organisations.

"Society is very divided on this subject, the Labour party is divided on this subject. I think you will find more views represented on the Guardian than in other news organisations.

"We try to have a debate, but it's complicated."