UK politics live: Half of Labour voters ‘let down’ by Starmer, Jenrick vows he won’t return Tories to centre

The chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has admitted that the much-touted £24 billion in green investment across Britain is not necessarily guaranteed.

Speaking to Sky News, Pat McFadden clarified that there is no set “lower band” for private sector commitments.

He said: “You have to go with what it says on the press release, this is what the companies have announced that their intentions are.”

Pressed if this meant there could be no investment in practice, he replied: “No, it won’t be zero, because some of these companies are already investing in the UK as well. We will definitely see more than zero.”

Labour’s vote share since winning power has continued its dramatic slide to less than 30 per cent after voters aged 55 and over abandoned Keir Starmer’s party, new polling has revealed.

The Techne UK weekly tracker poll for The Independent has registered support for Labour falling to 29 per cent down five points from the election and two points below last week.

But with the Tories still undecided on a new leader, they failed to capitalise on Labour’s loss of popularity with a gain of just one point from last week to 24 per cent. Meanwhile, Nigel Farage’s Reform UK was also up one to 19 per cent.

Our political editor David Maddox has the full story below:

Cabinet minister Pat McFadden has defended former senior aide Sue Gray after skipping a major devolved nations summit.

Doing the morning media round, he said Ms Gray is taking a short break after “going through quite a lot” in recent weeks.

The former chief of staff, who left her position in No 10, is transitioning to her new role as envoy to the nations and regions.

Speaking to Sky News about Ms Gray’s absence from the bilateral with regional and national leaders, Mr McFadden told Sky News: “Sue has been through quite a lot in the last few weeks.

“I worked with her, she is a great colleague. She is taking a short break now and I think we should allow her the time in privacy to do that.”

Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg has thrown his weight behind Robert Jenrcik in the Tory leadership contest, suggesting the former immigration minister is the party’s strongest candidate to challenge Reform UK.

The former Tory MP, who can still vote in the contest as a party member, said Mr Jenrick is best placed to “converse” with Nigel Farage potentially opening the door to an electoral pact.

He also suggested that Mr Jenrick could “steal Nigel’s clothes” and take on the party leader’s policies to win over right-wing voters.

Mr Rees-Mogg told GB News: “Who do we want to lead us to the next general election? Who do we think can take on the Reverend Starmer?

“Who will be able to converse with Nigel Farage and see where that may go one way or another? Who can steal Nigel’s clothes, if necessary, which may be the best way of going about it?

“Well, I’ve come to the conclusion that that person is Robert Jenrick.”

Mr Jenrick faces Kemi Badenoch in the final stretch, with the winner decided by Conservative Party members on 2 November.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has welcomed the latest GDP figures, celebrating the return of growth to the UK economy.

“Growing the economy is the number one priority of this Government so we can fix the NHS, rebuild Britain and make working people better off,” she said.

Ms Reeves added: “While change will not happen overnight, we are not wasting any time on delivering on the promise of change.

“Next week, hundreds of the world’s biggest businesses will come to Britain as we deliver on our promise to bring investment, growth and jobs back to every part of the country.”

The UK economy saw a boost in August, growing by 0.2 per cent after flatlining in June and July, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The growth is a welcome sign for chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of the upcoming autumn Budget.

ONS director of economic statistics Liz McKeown said: “All main sectors of the economy grew in August, but the broader picture is one of slowing growth in recent months, compared to the first half of the year.

“In August, accountancy, retail and many manufacturers had strong months while construction also recovered from July’s contraction.

“These were partially offset by falls in wholesaling and oil extraction.”

Welcome back to the politics blog.

It’s a clam Friday in Westminster, with limited action as the political week winds down.

Here’s a quick round of what’s happening:

• Sir Keir Starmer is on the move today. The prime minister is in Scotland for a meeting of the Council of Nations, where leaders of the UK’s devolved administration will discuss spending plans and economic growth.

• Sue Gray, Sir Keir’s former chief of staff and now in a liaison role for the nations and regions, won’t be attending.

• Meanwhile, Pat McFadden, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, prepares to give the morning media rounds.

• In the background, we are still following the Tory leadership race between Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch.

• But there’s already speculation that the winner may not last long in the role. Baroness Ruth Davidson, a Conservative peer, told Sky News that there’s a “good chance” of another contest within two years due to the candidates’ propensity for making “mistakes”.

Stay tuned for all the updates and analysis throughout the day.