First Secretary of State Louise Haigh's speech to the Trade Union Congress 2026
First Secretary of State Louise Haigh's speech to the Trade Union Congress 2026.
It’s a real privilege to be here with you today, albeit in very sad circumstances.
As has been said, you will all know the news of the Prime Minister’s father , that he very sadly passed away on Sunday night.
I’m sure I speak for everyone here today…
When I say that our love and our best wishes are with Andy and his family as they grieve the loss of a husband, a father and a grandfather.
The Prime Minister has talked so openly and so movingly about the influence that his father, Roy, had on his life and on his politics.
And many of you in this room will have had to personally experience the devastating impact that Alzheimer’s can have on the lives of you and your loved ones.
It’s at times like these that you want to be surrounded by the people closest to you…
And that’s one of the reasons why Andy was so sorry he couldn’t be here today…
[political content redacted]
Because the Prime Minister understands that the strength of our movement is drawn from our roots in the trade unions…
And that moments like these are such a valuable opportunity to come together.
To remind ourselves of our common endeavour…
Of what binds us and unites us in our daily fight to improve the lives of working people.
Like all families, we have and will always have our differences…
Our disagreements, big and small…
But on days like today, we should come together and remind ourselves of all that we have in common…
And everything that we have achieved, together.
At various points, I’ve sat next to some of you around the negotiating table…
And at other times, I’ve sat across from you.
I know which times I’ve preferred!
Sometimes you’ve backed us; sometimes you’ve challenged us.
Sometimes you’ve told us exactly what you think.
And we wouldn’t have it any other way.
But through all those years - in Opposition and in Government - there is a unifying belief that has bound us together.
A belief that brought me into politics…
And has shaped everything I’ve worked to achieve since.
The belief that when ordinary people find themselves up against powerful institutions…
They should never stand alone.
It’s a principle that runs through the heart of this government…
And it’s the same principle that runs through the core of everything you do.
[political content redacted] - united in a shared purpose to create a society where every person…
In every place…
Has the chance to fulfil their potential and to live the richer, fuller life that they deserve.
Because as the late, great Jimmy Reid put it, “a rat race is for rats.”
Congress, we know that such a future won’t be handed to us.
We need to go out - every day - and fight to create it.
With the determination to fight for working people…
And the courage to act when the situation demands it.
It isn’t always easy…
But - nothing worth doing ever is.
And I am proud of what [political content redacted] we have done so far:
- New rights for renters
- Lifting half a million children out of poverty by ending the two child cap
- Record investment in our NHS
- Rebuilding our infrastructure
- Saving our steel industry
- Bringing our buses back under public control
And especially close to my heart from my time as the Transport Secretary - bringing our railways back into public ownership.
We know we need to go further and faster to deliver the scale of change the country expects…
But never be in any doubt whose side this government are on.
Whether it was standing up for workers illegally sacked by P&O Ferries…
Or changing public procurement to create more good jobs here in Britain….
We are proudly on the side of working people.
And Congress, I can promise you now…
Under this government, there will never be any doubt about whose side we are on.
As Barbara Castle, that red-haired socialist from Yorkshire once said:
“In politics, guts is all”
We’re fortunate in this government to not be short of too many red headed socialists. It’s great to see Angela Rayner back with us on the front row, joining us again today.
And that means never shying away from the big issues of our time.
AI has enormous potential to improve lives…
To transform our public services, make our businesses stronger and deliver new scientific breakthroughs.
We must work to make the most of the opportunities that AI can bring.
But I know people are worried, rightly, about what it also means for their jobs…
What it means for the world their kids are growing up in, and of course their safety.
We should heed the warnings of those who are at the forefront of developing this technology.
There are clearly huge risks to our national security and society if the right guardrails are not put in place.
This is an issue that goes beyond our borders…
And we are ready to work with our international partners to make sure we get this right.
AI will reshape our lives and the lives of our children.
We have a solemn duty to mitigate the risks and ensure that it’s for the benefit - not the detriment - of our society.
It is these challenges - and our collective response to them - that will define the future our children inherit.
And just as the trade unions have used your voices to stand in solidarity with those who face persecution and injustice…
We must be guided by those shared values…
Both here and around the world.
Including what is happening in Gaza and the West Bank.
The Prime Minister was right when he said that Britain had been too slow in our response.
At a time when it has never been more important to remind the world who we are…
We hesitated.
Well, Congress – not anymore.
We will no longer stand by while innocent Palestinian families are torn apart…
While innocent children are killed in Gaza…
And while the hope of a two-state solution evaporates before our eyes.
The sanctions Ed Milliband announced last week are about changing course.
The Israeli people are not responsible for the actions of their government…
So we are purposefully targeting the illegal settlements…
Increasing pressure on the Israeli government…
And helping to keep the hope of peace in the Middle East alive.
We will stand against injustice.
We will stand up for peace.
We will build a coalition of international partners to speak with one voice.
And remind the world who we are.
The lesson is clear…
Our collective power matters.
But as the Prime Minister has said - we’ve spent too much of the last four decades doing everything we can to weaken it.
He has spoken about the wrong turns we took in the 1980s.
But we don’t talk enough about what that meant for our unions.
You were weakened [political content redacted]…
Marginalised in the decades that followed…
[political content redacted]
Treated like a nuisance at best…
And part of the problem at worst.
We know those attacks weren’t just on you.
They were attacks on the millions of working people you represent.
The nurse finishing a night shift.
The teaching assistant opening the school gates.
The bus driver getting people to work.
Every worker who gets up and gets on every single day.
When they weakened you…
They weakened them.
And whilst this Government has the privilege to serve.
You have my word:
We will never go back.
But our communities are still living with the consequences of these lost decades.
Good jobs and opportunities drained away.
Councils left under powered and under resourced.
High streets hollowed out.
The pubs and clubs that once brought people together - boarded up and abandoned.
Power and autonomy that once belonged to communities… drifting further and further away from them.
The frustration people feel across the country…
That so many of your members feel…
It’s not unjustified; it’s not unreasonable.
It’s what happens when people are told - year after year - that ‘the decisions have already been taken’…
That ‘this is just the way things are’.
It’s what happens when a country gets comfortable with leaving certain people and places behind.
Well, no more, Congress.
We’re going to put power back into our communities.
We’re going to put power back into the workplace.
And, together, we’re going to put power back into the hands of working people.
Over the last 8 weeks, I’ve had the chance to meet with leaders from across regional and local government…
Each with their own challenges and opportunities.
But what united so many of them was worry.
Worry about one issue in particular:
The cost of living.
This government is committed to bringing back hope to this country…
To get Britain believing in itself again…
But we’re not naïve to what that will take.
To the scale of the challenge ahead of us.
Because for so many families…
Those things…
Hope…
Belief…
They don’t come easily right now.
When you’re up to your eyes in bills…
When you’re sick to your stomach with worry…
Those things aren’t foundations…
They’re luxuries.
And we can’t ask people to look to the future…
Until they can see through to the end of the month.
Over the summer, we’ve started some of the work to give people breathing space.
But to support working people for the long-term…
To change things…
To really change things…
We have to rewire the state completely.
And we can’t do that without listening to working people first.
We can’t do it without their voice in the room…
Or without the people who lift those voices up every single day.
We can’t do it without every single one of you, Congress.
It’s not something you hear often in party politics…
And probably not what some of my fellow Ministers expected to hear on their first day…
But every single one of them knows:
Expect to lose power.
Because if a decision can be taken closer to the people it affects…
That is where we want it taken.
If a city knows a new transport link could unlock thousands of jobs…
We want it to have the power to build it.
If a town can see the jobs of the future coming…
We want it to have the power to train its young people for them.
If a community has a chance to bring life back to a struggling high street…
We want it to have the power to take it.
Wherever there are opportunities for working people…
Wherever there is the potential of investment, of good jobs, or of a new future…
It’s local people who will see it first.
So, Congress…
Let’s finally give them the power to seize it.
And when local people have the power to shape their economy…
And government stands ready to back them…
Then business will have the confidence to invest.
Money starts flowing back into our communities.
And working people begin to see and feel the change they have been crying out for.
The shutters coming up on our shops.
The doors opening to our pubs.
The empty unit on the high street filled.
Young people choosing to build their lives where they grew up…
And parents believing their kids can have a better life than they did.
No more people written off.
No more places left behind.
That, Congress, is good growth in every postcode.
Now…
New jobs…
New opportunities…
New industries…
It’d be easy to get carried away.
But, Congress, you know as well as I do that a new job…
Isn’t always a good job.
And all the investment in the world means very little if the people doing the work still don’t feel secure.
If they don’t know what hours they’ll get.
Or if they can’t afford to take a day off sick.
That is why we passed the Employment Rights Act.
And when I say “we”, Congress - I’m not just talking about the government.
I’m talking about every person in this room.
Because of you, working people have had the biggest uplift in their rights in a generation.
Changes that won’t just transform lives today…
But the lives of our children and our grandchildren.
Sick pay from day one.
An end to fire and rehire.
More protection for mums.
The right to paternity leave for dads.
Stronger protections from unfair dismissal.
And an end to exploitative zero-hour contracts that give employers all the flexibility…
And working people all the insecurity.
And that principle should apply to the rest of our working lives too.
Because life isn’t always as neat as we’d like to be…
Or as employers would like it to be.
There’s kids to pick up.
Parents to look after.
Families who rely on us at short notice.
And sometimes, a little bit of flexibility can make all the difference.
Now…
I know that businesses have to make things work too.
Not every job can be done from home…
And not every request can be agreed.
But every request can and should be taken seriously.
So today…
Im pleased to announce that we will strengthen the right to flexible working.
If an employer wants to turn down a request…
They will have to sit down with their employee…
Properly consider it…
And explain why.
Congress…
That is what putting power back into the hands of working people
looks like.
Power over your place
Power over your work.
When you get those two things together…
You get something else:
Power over your future.
The freedom to plan.
The freedom to make choices.
The freedom to look beyond the end of the month…
And start looking to the years ahead.
To believe life can get better.
That your children can do better.
And that the place you call home can have a better future too.
That is how we bring back hope.
Congress…
The trade unions are vital to [political content redacted] this government…
Vital to this country and its future.
We aren’t a monument - we are a movement.
And you don’t stop campaigning because we’re in government.
I don’t mean with placards and loudhailers - although I know how many of you in this room are partial to them.
But that every single day in Government
We are campaigning against the vested interests, the forces trying to stop progress…
[political content redacted]
Against the far-right ring-leaders marching on our streets in balaclavas…
Seeking to spread fear and division in our communities.
Against all those who talk down our country and say…
That “things can’t get better”.
That “this can’t be done.”
Congress, today we re-commit ourselves to our collective endeavour
To turn the page on four decades of lost opportunity
To deliver the change our country is crying out for,
And to build a future
That the people we represent expect and deserve.
Thank you Congress.