Boris Johnson's Tory conference speech: Five takeaways including M People, arm wrestles and fighting alien invaders
Boris Johnson has struck an optimistic tone in his speech to the virtual Conservative Party Conference, promising to make the UK the world leader in renewable energy.
But the prime minister, who said he wants every home in the UK to be powered by wind by 2030, spoke about much more.
Here are five points to takeaway from Mr Johnson's speech:
His attack on 'lefty human rights lawyers'
The prime minister ramped up rhetoric between the government and the justice system, telling Tory members he would tackle "lefty human rights lawyers" who he suggested stand in the way of criminals receiving proper punishments.
He said: "We’re also backing those police up, protecting the public by changing the law to stop the early release of serious sexual and violent offenders and stopping the whole criminal justice system from being hamstrung by what the home secretary would doubtless – and rightly – call the lefty human rights lawyers, and other do-gooders.”
His comments follow a series of disagreements between the government and the courts.
The most significant being the Supreme Court ruling in 2019 that the PM's decision to suspend Parliament was unlawful was thought to fuel Tory suspicions about judicial activism.
Mr Johnson says he's got his 'mojo' back
The prime minister rubbished reports that he had not been himself since his time in intensive care battling coronavirus, saying the accusation is "self-evident drivel".
“I could refute these critics of my athletic abilities in any way they want: arm-wrestle, leg-wrestle, Cumberland wrestle, sprint-off, you name it," he said.
Mr Johnson claimed accusations against him were part of a wider plot by EU supporters who don't want the Brexit process to be complete.
"This is self-evident drivel," he said, "the kind of seditious propaganda that you would expect from people who don’t want this Government to succeed, who wanted to stop us delivering Brexit and all our other manifesto pledges.”
The need for social distancing could be over in a year
Without actually saying it, the prime minister suggested the need for social distancing will be over within a year.
He said by the next Tory conference - which will come at the same time next year - "we will be face to face and cheek by jowl," adding "we will no longer have to greet each other by touching elbows".
This year's party conference was held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic because the need for social distancing meant it could not be held in-person.
But Mr Johnson said he was confident the UK would succeed in fighting off the virus "just as this country has seen off every alien invader for the last 1,000 years".
Mr Johnson pledges to 'help turn generation rent into generation buy'
The PM told the conference he wanted to “fix our broken housing market” and help young people onto the housing ladder.
He vowed to “transform the sclerotic planning system” and make it “faster and easier to build beautiful new homes without destroying the green belt or desecrating our countryside”.
He reiterated his commitment to a manifesto promise that first time buyers get the chance to take out a long-term, fixed-rate mortgage of up to 95% of the value of the home.
He added: “We believe that this policy could create two million more owner-occupiers, the biggest expansion of home ownership since the 1980s.
“We will help turn generation rent into generation buy.”
The PM is a fan of 90s dance group M People
Stating that he had such a nasty experience with Covid because he was “too fat” and had lost 26 pounds since he had the disease, the Prime Minister referenced one of the band’s biggest hits Search For The Hero, saying: “I am going to continue that diet, because you’ve got to search for the hero inside yourself in the hope that that individual is considerably slimmer.”