Reform's 'racist' migrant plans could tear Britain apart, says PM

Keir Starmer attacked Reform UK's "racist" plans to revoke the rights of thousands of people to live in Britain, as a series of cabinet ministers escalated attacks on Nigel Farage on the first day of the Labour conference yesterday.

- Jessica Elgot Kiran Stacey

The prime minister said plans by the Reform leader to revoke indefinite leave to remain from families who may have spent years working in Britain could “tear this country apart”, though he said he understood many tempted to vote for Reform were frustrated at the pace of change.

The Guardian understands Labour HQ is to ramp up its efforts to contact voters who may be considering voting Reform. MPs and activists will be told to get on an election footing to seek out data on nonvoters in their patches - to avoid the mistakes progressives made that led to Brexit and the election of Donald Trump.

The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, and the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood, are expected to launch their own attacks on Farage and Reform today, in a show of unity from the party, which has been under significant pressure since the summer.

Reeves will issue a veiled warning to businesses of the instability they would face and the potential breakdown of trade deals. Mahmood, who will announce tough new conditions for granting leave to remain, will stress to the conference that Labour must be tough on migration or voters will fall for Farage's "false promises".

Across the conference, ministers urged party unity and for members to turn their fire on Farage rather than Starmer's leadership - with several explicitly criticising the leadership ambitions of the mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham. The Scottish deputy leader, Jackie Baillie, said Burnham should “stop this nonsense” and the health secretary, Wes Streeting, said the party should get behind “the team captain”.