02 October 2023 , 14:29
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Hundreds of Tory activists queued up to hear Liz Truss speak at Conservative Party conference, apparently unaware that 2022 happened.
The former Tory leader, whose free-market, tax slashing policies crashed the economy during her 49-day premiership, gave her only address of the conference, arguing for even more wild tax cuts and deregulation.
And party faithful were eager to hear what she had to say, with a line snaking around the Midland hotel lobby to get into the standing-room-only event.
Also speaking at the event - billed a “Growth Rally” - were former Home Secretary Priti Patel, former Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg and former Environment Secretary Ranil Jayawardena.
Nigel Farage also attended the rally and sat on the front row, but did not give a speech.
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Many have argued that Ms Truss’ brief stint in No10 not only damaged the British economy to the tune of £30 billion - it also trashed the Conservative Party’s reputation for economic competence and doomed them to electoral disaster for a generation.
Ms Truss had some awkward suggestions for Rishi Sunak (Jonathan Buckmaster)Yet this week has seen reports that she’s eyeing up a return to front-line politics - even running again to be party leader.
But at today’s rally, she settled for hurling inconvenient policy rocks at Rishi Sunak.
The surprisingly popular mass-delusion event came almost a year to the day after Ms Truss - the least popular Prime Minister in living memory - was drummed out of Downing Street for sending people’s mortgage bills skyrocketing.
Yet she called on the government to “cut the bills” by fracking for shale gas under the UK.
"We are sitting on 50 years worth of sustainable gas.
"Can you imagine, if we unleash that, what that will mean for households, what that will mean for businesses?
"We can see from the United States that their energy bills are half what our energy bills are here."
Ms Truss, Mr Jayawardena, Ms Patel and Mr Rees-Mogg (Jonathan Buckmaster)Later she demanded a bonfire of environmental regulations to allow property developers to build 50,000 more homes a year - singling out rules requiring builders to protect newts and bats.
Ms Truss urged members to "unleash their inner conservative" after calling for corporation tax to be cut to 19% at least and to slash Government spending.
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"Let's stop taxing and banning things," she told the packed room.
"Let's instead build things and make things. Let's be prepared to make conservative arguments again, even if it's unpopular, even if it's difficult. I want everybody in this room to unleash their inner conservative.
"And finally, my friends, let's make Britain grow again."
Later, Jacob Rees-Mogg revealed he’d called for a flat tax rate - a policy which would mean huge tax breaks for the rich - but it was “too radical even for Liz Truss ”
And he called for rules on the import of meat and cheese to be scrapped, saying “I want cheaper food. I want hormone-injected beef from New Zealand.”
Speaking after the event, Nigel Farage said: “She's absolutely right on the big stuff - I'm slightly sceptical on the housing.
"This is a battle for ideas, it's a rejection of her own party's policies, but it's really a battle for what the party becomes after it loses the next election."