Johnson’s speech will have reassured his supporters

When Boris Johnson addressed his party in his first in-person conference leader’s speech since winning a majority of 80 seats, he did it in a different hall to the room his ministers have spoken in this week. The larger set not only helped make the Prime Minister’s speech stand out, it also meant that it could take on the form of a rally. The main stage was surrounded by supporters holding placards with various government slogans. It was a theme of Johnson’s rallying speech as he crowbarred ‘levelling up’ and ‘build back better’ (at one point morphing into ‘build back beaver’) into a lively address to his party — aimed at reminding them why he was an election winner.

After complaints on the fringes of Tory party conference over the idea the party is moving to the left, Johnson used his speech to talk up his conservative credentials. He credited the vaccine rollout with transforming the political landscape from a year ago but pressed the point that it was he who chose to lift all restrictions in July when many — including the opposition — were having doubts.