Rolling coverage of the final day of the Conservative party conference in Birmingham, including David Camerons speech
5.37pm BST
Heres some final Twitter reaction to the Ukip announcement. Many thanks for reading and for all your many comments.
I think Ukip could have press released that one. Ukip lost £1m of lobby goodwill dragging reporters from Brum to Bristol for a donation.
The hacks will be really p*ssed off at being taken to Bristol for that #ukip
As I tweeted pre-5pm, more significant to Ukip's 2015 impact is money, not MPs. Imagine that money will be thrown into key targets.
This hotel is one of Arron Banks' businesses - he says he has all sorts of European workers here.
What did we learn from @UKIP announcement? Self made millionaires are sensitive souls who don't like to be mocked
5.31pm BST
Apologies for the long delay. We had a few technical problems. After promising to take good care of Andrews blog I nearly broke it.
As you will have possibly heard, the much-touted Ukip announcement was big, but somewhat marred by much bigger expectations - notably of another MPs defection - which Ukip failed to quell.
I am hoping that Mr Hague may now know who I am.
5.04pm BST
A reminder: were still awaiting the promised big Ukip announcement at the manor house outside Bristol. It was due at 5pm, and we still dont know if its just a big donation, or a defection.
4.53pm BST
The Guardians music editor Michael Hann has this to say about Camerons choice of mood music in the hall for his speech:
As Philip Hammond left the stage and the Tory delegates in Birmingham commenced their hubbub in anticipation of David Camerons speech, a record of such blinding obviousness was piped throught the hall that its hard to be believe it hasnt been the Official Conservative Theme for decades. Sun is shining in the sky, trilled ELOs Jeff Lynne, there aint a cloud in sight. Just the one song was played before Michael Gove stepped up to introduce Cameron at some length but when that one song is Mr Blue Sky, why dilute the message with anything else?
Leaving aside the do-you-see-what-we-did-there nature of the title positing Cameron not just as true blue, but also the bringer of happiness to all and sundry Mr Blue Sky fits Tory values down to the ground. For all their grandeur, ELO were a deeply conservative proposition, with one basic function: to remind people how good the Beatles were. The past is a foreign country; they do things better there. Lyrically, too, its a reminder to the Tory activists that the grass isnt greener on the Farage side of the fence: Hey there, Mr Blue/ Were so pleased to be with you/ Look around, see what you do/ Everybody smiles at you. Wishful thinking, perhaps, but certainly what the Tory leadership would like the rank-and-file to be thinking.
Finally, after Gove left the stage, the lights dimmed and an inspiring video was played as Camerons intro tape. Highlights of the Tory greats speaking DC, Theresa May and so on were backed by the Killers hit All These Things That I Have Done, which was curious choice for two reasons. First, because Gove had been banging on about how strong and forthright the Tories were on the world stage, and that Cameron could be trusted to take military action, but the famous refrain of that song runs: Ive got soul but Im not a soldier. Well, mate, if hes boasting about not being a soldier, should you be making claims about his military prowess? Second, because a refrain that is no more than a meaningless string of words striving for profundity seems uncannily like an apt metaphor for so many modern political speeches.
4.50pm BST
Spotted, Ukips man of the moment. The question remains: are there any more about to emerge?
Businessman Arron Banks, once a Tory, now a Ukip donor ahead of Farage presser. pic.twitter.com/MHsbEf27cP
Ukip donor Arron Banks says he "lent" money to the Yate branch of the Tory party. How much has been disputed....
Arron Banks says he was vice chair of Basingstoke Tories in the 90s.
4.40pm BST
Other reporters have travelled further for the Ukip announcement, and they wont be very pleased if its simply Banks handing Farage a giant, lottery winner-style cheque.
I have just told @Nigel_Farage that I've dragged a suitcase of dirty washing from #CPC14 for his announcement in Bristol. Hope it's worth it
4.38pm BST
My colleague, Steven Morris, is at the very picturesque scene of the 5pm Ukip press conference, Old Down Manor, owned by new party donor Arron Banks. Steven writes:
Pretty setting for Farage presser. Distant views of the Severn....wild speculation over whos here.
4.18pm BST
Earlier today and youre forgiven if you missed it - the Intellectual Property Act 2014 came into force, allowing (among other things) the use of copyrighted material for the purposes of parody, caricature or pastiche without permission.
4.08pm BST
Our video team has put together these edited highlights from Camerons speech.
4.05pm BST
My colleague Frances Perraudin has been chatting to a series of young people to get their thoughts on Camerons speech.
Cameron was on the attack and the speech was aggressive, but I was quite confused about what side he was leaning towards he seemed to alternate between traditional conservative and centrist. I did like some of his ideas, especially his plan to tackle zero hours contracts. That would be useful for a lot of people and allow them to have a reliable income and make future plans.
My view of the speech was tainted by the fact that I dont really like Cameron anyway, but it was pretty much what I expected. I expected him to announce tax cuts. I did agree with him when he said he would extend the National Citizen Service. I havent personally taken part in it, but I know people who did and said it was brilliant. But thats all I agreed with. It made me very angry when he talked about supporting human rights. He supported the Thatcher government which supported the apartheid regime in South Africa.
I started off thinking it was a very well delivered speech, but then he turned to the teleprompter. Miliband seemed much more connected to the people in the audience. The speech hasnt changed my voting intentions its still either Greens or Labour for me.
I thought Camerons speech was decent it was very powerful and aggressive but Milibands was better. I preferred the clear structure of Milibands speech, with his six-point plan.
I liked what Cameron said about starter homes, so people under 40 can be helped to buy a house, and raising the tax-free allowance is a good idea.
3.53pm BST
This is Peter Walker here. Its a rare honour, taking over Andrews blog. I shall be careful not to dent or scratch it.
As he mentioned, the main remaining business for the day seems to be a planned Ukip press conference at 5pm in, not Birmingham or London, but Tockington, near Bristol. The primary purpose of the event is for Arron Banks, the Tory donor-turned defector, to present Nigel Farage with a large cheque for Ukip. However, rumours are rife that Farage could also unveil another Conservative defection, possibly even another MP. We shall have to wait and see. Heres a couple of the many tweets on this.
think the story here will be of a much bigger donation to @ukip but not another defection. happy to be proved wrong though on the latter.
This UKIP defection stuff is bit like transfer deadline day. Soon we'll get sightings of Tory MP (+ name) heading for a medical in Thornbury
3.42pm BST
So, the two main parties have now had their conferences, and they both ended up producing rather conventional policy offers. Labour came out with an NHS spending pledge. And David Cameron is offering tax cuts.
There is a third conference next week, when the Lib Dems are in Glasgow. Normally they go first, but they delayed it this year because of the Scottish referendum.
David Cameron launched an audacious bid to woo voters in next years general election by pledging to raise the personal income tax threshold by £2,000 a year as well as lifting the 40% tax band to £50,000.
Casting the Conservatives as the trade union for hardworking people, the prime minister reached out to aspirational voters in Middle Britain by unveiling a £7.2bn double tax cutting promise, which prompted a rapturous reception at the Tory conference.
3.31pm BST
Dominic Cummings, Michael Goves abrasive former special adviser, has been tweeting about David Camerons speech. He wasnt impressed.
1/ For a decade Cameroons told me & others raising basic & top tax thresholds a bad idea & 'there's no money'. Now grab idea as a liferaft
2/ Likely that swing voters will believe the cuts but won't believe the tax cut promises for post-2017. Do or do not - there is no 'promise'
3/ Swing voters don't believe he kept his promise not to cut the NHS this Parliament. Why wd they believe another promise?
4/ The UberPundit has had 5 yrs to cut taxes but instead argued 'there's no money' EXCEPT for cutting taxes for the richest
5/ Now Cameroons doing what they always said was stupid - promising tax cuts to try to swing an election
6/ They shd have NOT cut the 50p rate and actually done what they are now promising re the 2 thresholds
7/ It's likely swing voters will stick with their perceptions of recent history rather than trust promises about a post-referendum scenario
3.27pm BST
And heres some reaction to the speech from charities and pressure groups.
From Julia Unwin, chief executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Raising the personal tax allowance to £12,500 is a noble intention and of course will be welcomed by many, but it will bypass working poor families in the greatest need and the same increase in incomes could be achieved at a much lower cost.
The policy will benefit a working couple with two children earning low wages by £20 a week, costing £11.5bn. But the best way to ensure extra support reaches people on low incomes is reforming Universal Credit, so workers keep more of their earnings before benefits are withdrawn. This approach would deliver the same benefit, but cost between £1bn and £4bn.
It is encouraging to hear David Cameron mention inequality, but the reality is that none of our political parties have outlined substantial policies to reduce it, and none of them have a record to be proud of. Today the national minimum wage was increased, but it would still take someone on that wage 342 years to earn just a years average pay for a FTSE 100 CEO. That is the reality of working life in Britain
Plans to raise the tax free allowance will benefit some of the low paid, but the lowest-paid will get nothing at all, and it will mean more is received by those at the very top. Raising the 40p threshold to £50,000 is an excellent way to increase inequality, it is a tax cut for both millionaires and those earning twice the average salary - it does not help a squeezed middle or those on low or middle incomes at all.
More money would go to those on middle and high incomes than those on low incomes from [raising the personal allowance], at a time when the poorest are being forced to bear the brunt of cuts to public spending. Families would gain just £140 a year when this tax break combines with universal credit, falling far short of the hundreds of pounds a year a low paid single parent would lose in the chancellors proposed freeze to working age benefits. There are much better ways to help low income families than increasing the personal tax allowance ...
Research published by Gingerbread has found that for every £1,000 increase in the personal tax allowance, working people in receipt of universal credit will take home the equivalent of just £70, compared with £200 for those not reliant on government financial support.
David Cameron claimed Britain is leading on climate change, but in the next breath pledged new oil rigs. The prime minister doesnt get it - we need to get off our addition to dirty fossil fuels and shift to renewable energy that will generate thousands of jobs and bring our bills under control.
This was a positive speech for taxpayers, with tax cuts for the lowest paid and long-overdue relief for ordinary people being clobbered by the higher rate of tax. Leaving more of peoples money in their own pockets is not just morally right, but the best way to promote economic growth and long-term prosperity. Taxes in Britain have been too high for too long, and the prime minister is absolutely right to want to bring them down for hard-pressed working people.
The next step must be to bring National Insurance thresholds in line with Income Tax, taking those on the lowest pay out of tax altogether.
3.12pm BST
Heres Natalie Bennett, the Green party leader, on the speech.
Our NHS has been damaged, and the staff had their lives disrupted, by continual change driven by the ideological commitment of recent governments to privatising the NHS and restructuring it to prepare for further privatisation.
This government has failed to provide the funds needed to keep up with the growing demand for healthcare with our ageing population, and to keep the staff decently paid.
3.07pm BST
Here is some reaction to the speech from business.
From John Cridland, the CBI director general
The CBI welcomes the prime ministers commitment to a long-term economic plan for a successful Britain. Businesses are ready to step up to the plate to make sure that growth is meaningful to everyone.
Overall, this was a speech that stressed the importance of the economy and didnt duck the scale of the challenges we face ...
Businesses are still waiting for clarity in a number of areas including energy and Europe. The next government will need to set out a 50-year plan for energy security, and be explicit on what its negotiating stance is on the UKs future relationship with the European Union.
At the heart of the prime ministers speech was an aspiration to cut taxes for millions of people. Raising the personal allowance, lifting the 40p threshold and keeping corporation tax low will all ensure that work pays and more jobs are created.
We await the details of how such reforms will be financed. Increasing the personal allowance is particularly expensive to the Exchequer. Furthermore, the 40p rate (42p with National Insurance) should not apply until an income reaches at least twice median earnings, or £53,000. Nevertheless, this is a bold and overdue correction to a tax system that was sucking in more and more medium earners.
3.01pm BST
George Osborne claims that was David Camerons best speech.
Best speech PM's given. Spelt out clear plan for next 5 years. Contrast with last week couldn't be starker
2.59pm BST
Heres Len McCluskey, the Unite general secretary, on the speech.
David Camerons double talk on the NHS is a sick joke. The Tories are not the party of the NHS, they are the party that sold the NHS.
The prime minister promised no top down reorganisation of the NHS but billions of pounds are being squandered on a reorganisation that has already handed 70% of NHS contracts to the private sector. David Cameron did not have a mandate to sell-off our NHS - no one voted for it ...
2.54pm BST
Heres the verdict on David Camerons speech from the Guardians Comment is free panel. There are contributions from: Daniel Hannan, John Harris, Mark Wallace, Rafael Behr, Melissa Kite and Sarah Wollaston.
Heres an extract from John Harriss contribution.
Of course, relative to reality most of what Cameron said was borderline ridiculous. Conservative homilies about how families come first, the benefits of hard work, saving for a first home, and security in retirement sound more absurd than ever; the stuff about so-called welfare glosses over policies that amount to institutionalised cruelty.
The passage in which Cameron claimed the Tories were a trade union for everyone from hard working parents to the children of the poor was genuinely absurd. As against all that triumphal applause, note also that even if the Conservatives win the next election, they will get no more than the support of around a quarter of the electorate: some mandate.
2.49pm BST
Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, was on the World at One earlier talking about the proposed tax cuts. (See 1.20pm.) Here are some direct quotes.
This will only help income tax payers, it will essentially help anyone with incomes between £10,000 and £100,000, it wont help people over £100,000 and it wont help people under £10,000.
The most direct thing you can do of course is to increase benefits if what you really want to do is help the very poorest, if you want to help people through the direct tax system then its actually more effective to increase the point at which you start to pay national insurance contributions because that now comes in a good couple of thousand pounds below where you start to pay income tax.
We are looking at promises of £7 billion of tax giveaways, in the context of an overall plan to get the deficit down, but even without tax giveaways that requires really pretty extraordinary levels of spending cuts, such that most government departments will have seen their spending cut by a third between 2010 and 2018.
So how are you going to afford this? Well, even more dramatic spending cuts, or actually whats happened quite often over parts of this parliament is that weve seen other bits and pieces of tax increases to pay for some of the increases in the personal allowance.
2.43pm BST
Weve produced an interactive version of the speech, with a what he said and what he meant commentary from my colleague Tom Clark. Do take a look.
2.32pm BST
Ed Balls, the shadow chancellor, has issued a lengthy statement on David Camerons speech.
He says that nobody will fooled by Camerons pie in the sky tax promise, because it is unfunded, and he suggests that VAT might have to go up to pay for it.
David Camerons speech showed no recognition that working people are £1,600 a year worse off under the Tories nor that the NHS is going backwards on their watch.
Instead he tried to pull the wool over peoples eyes. Nobody will be fooled by pie in the sky promises of tax cuts in six years time when David Cameron cannot tell us where the money is coming from. Even the Tories admit this is an unfunded commitment of over £7bn, so how will they pay for it? Will they raise VAT on families and pensioners again?
2.20pm BST
Patrick OFlynn, Ukips economic spokesman, says David Camerons tax announcements, which mirror Ukip policy, are dramatic evidence of the impact Ukip is having on British politics.
Heres an extract from his lengthy statement.
They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and I am delighted that the prime minister has responded so hurriedly to UKIPs tax-cutting agenda.
Last week I called for the other parties to come to a consensus with Ukip about lifting the personal allowance to the level of the full-time minimum wage. To hear the prime minister agree just five days later can only be welcomed. It only now remains for Nick Clegg and Ed Miliband to come into line and this can be a comprehensive consensus across the political spectrum to take into the next parliament.
2.12pm BST
Here are the most interesting comments on the speech Ive seen from political journalists.
Broadly, they think its effective.
Cameron's speech was many things Miliband's speech could and should have been, but was not: big tent, pragmatic, optimistic.
Strength of Cameron speech was its focus on bread-and-butter issues. Tories! This is what happens when you park the EU obsession.
Of course Cameron's announcements are profligate. But public trust him with finances. He gets to pledge things Labour currently could not.
Cameron is right to focus on "me in Downing St or Ed Miliband in Downing St". Even now, he is the Tory party's most valuable single asset.
Cameron asks people not to trust "the party of big debt". Which party would that be? (two pics attached) pic.twitter.com/aaVUjoWH5c
Cameron's speech = classic Tory Coke - sound money, tax cuts, a fight with Europe. The question - has Britain got the taste for it?
I have to say that section on the NHS was brilliant.
As a piece of political writing, that was the best speech Cameron has done. Clear, well written and cleverly constructed
That was a terrific closing section. Dawn is breaking after tough times: don't go back into the dark. #cameron #CPC14
Not so sure about spending money that hasn't yet been saved on tax cuts, or promising the imposs on EU immigration. Cameron speech.
Missing from Cameron speech - any reference to (1) Boris Johnson (2) Nick Clegg and the @LibDems #CPC14
Few voters will hear the whole thing, but Cameron's speech did exactly what it should: meet many of their concerns in turn + offer a vision
Things Cameron didn't mention, though he had a script: bedroom tax, foodbanks and A&E closures. Don't expect hounding from media on this
Cameron says Cons are Trade Union for hardworking parents. Obvious Lab riposte - more like Trade Union for bankers and oligarchs, but ...
David Cameron accidentally says he "resents" the poor. But it'd explain his cuts to benefits for workers, disabled and unemployed people
So - are Cameron's tax cuts supposed to be offered when the deficit is cleared? Originally scheduled for next year, now - umm - 2018 #cpc14
Cameron's best speech to conference since entering Downing St. Tone varied wildly, but good bits v good indeed.
COMMENT A classic last Leader's speech before Election. Full of attack lines for Cons to go out and sell.
2.04pm BST
Heres another chart of the distributional impact of David Camerons tax cuts. It has been posted by Ben Richards, a researcher at the Social Market Foundation.
Cameron's tax cuts worth over £2k for most of top 10% earners, £500 for middle 50%, nothing for lowest earners pic.twitter.com/SOmiONhuOj
1.55pm BST
Frances OGrady, the TUC general secretary, says the speech, and the other policies announced at this conference, mark the end of compassionate Conservatism.
If David Cameron were the leader of the trade union for hardworking people he would be thrashed in his next election for delivering the longest and deepest living standards cut in living memory.
The policies announced this week will make things worse. The chancellor promised to take cash from the working poor to pay for tax breaks for the richest pensioners.
1.47pm BST
Danny Alexander, the Lib Dem chief secretary to the Treasury, has released this statement:
The Tories shameless attempt to copy Liberal Democrat tax policy will be utterly incredible to the millions of working people who they have made clear will be their main target for cuts in the next parliament.
The Conservatives opposed increases to the tax threshold at the last election. The big tax cuts for 25m working people in this Parliament have only been delivered because of the determination and commitment of Liberal Democrats to fight for them every day.
1.44pm BST
There was a significant omission in David Camerons speech.
Cameron says will scrap Human Rights Act and replace with British Bill of Rights.Does not say will quit European Convention on Human Rights
A year ago, Theresa May said the option of leaving the ECHR was "on the table". It doesn't seem to be any more.
1.37pm BST
Here is a clip of David Camerons impression of William Hague.
1.36pm BST
Huffington Post has dug out four charts from the Institute for Fiscal Studies green budgets showing how the tax cuts announced by David Cameron disproportionately benefit the wealthy.
IFS: Cameron's pledge to raise tax allowance to 12.5k would help richest 50% most http://t.co/FNgMh1Hq76 #CPC14 pic.twitter.com/UonX7s7bMI
1.33pm BST
The full text of Camerons speech is now on the Conservative party website.
1.25pm BST
Michael Gove, the chief whip, is on the World at One. Asked where the money to fund the tax cuts will come from he says it will come from a sustained reduction in public spending.
Martha Kearney, the presenter, says that the Tories said they would use these savings to cut the deficit.
1.20pm BST
Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, is on the World at One now.
He says David Camerons tax cuts will cost £7bn a year by 2020.
1.18pm BST
Alan Travis, our home affairs editor, has this analysis of the plan to scrap the Human Rights Act:
Cameron said: A Conservative government would scrap the Human Rights Act, and replace it with a British bill of rights.
What does it mean? Scrapping the 1998 Human Rights Act introduced by Labour does not mean than British courts would no longer have to apply the European Convention on Human Rights. British citizens will still be able to take cases to the European court of human rights and its case law and the principles of the convention will still be in force in British courts. British citizens who want to bring cases will however no longer be able to have them heard by a British high court first. Instead they will face delays and extra costs in taking cases directly to Strasbourg. Before the 1998 Act brought rights home it took an average of five years at a cost of £30,000 to go to Strasbourg.
1.16pm BST
Patrick Wintour, our political editor, offers this initial analysis of the speech:
David Cameron demonstrated the auto cue was invented for a reason. He told his audience he was not a complicated man, but he revealed a passion about Europe, health, rewarding hard work and his own sense of public duty that some of his cabinet colleagues have despaired of him ever displaying.
It may be that his morale was lifted by the mistakes made by Ed Miliband in his conference speech - or simply he felt his back was up against the wall, and he needed to get out of neutral. It may have been the return of Steve Hilton, his one-time strategist, to draft the speech.
1.14pm BST
Never mind me. What did Gareth, the software worker how became a national figure after he featured prominently in Ed Milibands conference speech, make of what David Cameron had to say? My colleague Ben Quinn has been speaking to him.
Gareth didnt make time to watch Camerons speech today but doesnt seem particularly impressed by whats been coming out of the Conservative party conference.
I havent been watching it and I dont really have plans to watch it to be honest, he said.Ive found the tone of the conference to be pretty negative so far, but then Im not a Tory voter.
12.58pm BST
Camerons speech - Snap Verdict: In the battle of the party conference speeches, for the first time in at least three years, David Cameron has won by a mile. While Ed Milibands speech was something even loyalists struggled to get enthusiastic about, this will achieve exactly what Cameron wants. At the Guardian well be worrying about the distributive impact of his proposed tax cuts, and where the money will come from, but for the audience that Cameron is worried about - Tory activists, readers of tabloid papers and people who watch the TV news - it hit all the right buttons.
Cameron doesnt normally save up surprise announcements for his speeches, but he had one today and it was big enough to cause a stir (even if half of it was a straight lift from the Liberal Democrats).
12.40pm BST
Cameron says Britain is a country that has kept its promises to some of the poorest in the world.
Manufacturing is taking off again: cars are being built, and oil rigs are being made in the Tyne.
History is not written for us but by us, but the decisions we make today.
12.37pm BST
Cameron summarises what the Tories offer.
12.34pm BST
Cameron says interpretation of the European convention on human rights has led to things that are, frankly, wrong.
The European court of human rights wants prisoners to have the right to vote.
12.32pm BST
But there is a problem with immigration from within the EU, he says.
This will be at the haert of his renegotiation strategy, he says. So he will go to the EU and get this sorted out.
12.31pm BST
Camerons speech going down well inside the hall - and among some of his critics:
12.30pm BST
Cameron says we need controlled borders, and an economic system that puts Britons first.
We have shut down bogus colleges, and kicked out Abu Qatada. And he invites a round of applause for the woman who made that happen, the crime-busting Theresa May.
12.29pm BST
Cameron says Britain is mapping the genome. Cracking this code could save lives.
He understands how important this is. When you have a child how is very ill, you would do anything to know what is wrong.
You can only have a strong NHS if you have a strong economy.
12.28pm BST
Snap analysis of the tax cuts from our economics editor Larry Elliott:
David Cameron produced not one but two tax cutting rabbits from the hat in his speech.
The first is to raise the tax free income tax personal allowance from £10,500 to £12,500 during the next parliament. The idea is to show that the Conservatives are on the side of those on low incomes, since the move will mean that someone working 30 hours a week on the minimum wage will not pay any tax. It will also help all other tax payers and be pretty costly. Raising the personal allowance by £500 to £10,500 next April will cost almost £2bn a year.
12.27pm BST
Cameron says the elderly want to know the NHS is there for you.
Labour were spreading lies. How dare they, he says.
How dare they suggest I would every put that at risk for other peoples children.
12.25pm BST
Cameron says there were three problems with pensions: they were means-tested, so the more you saved, the more you lost: you had to buy an annuity; and you had to pay tax if the pension pot was passed on.
All those problems have been addressed, he says.
12.25pm BST
Cameron says he wants his national citizen service plan to become a rite of passage for all children.
A Conservative government would guarantee a place for every teenager in the country, he says.
12.24pm BST
Cameron says he has got in trouble before talking about Twitter.
He has got into trouble talking about a lot of things. But he has said enough about that.
12.23pm BST
Cameron says he wants every child to have a great education.
His daughter, Florence, has just started school. For the first time, all three of his children are at the same primary school.
12.18pm BST
Cameron mocks Ed Miliband for forgetting the mention the deficit in his speech. He jokes about how he once forgot his daughter down the pub.
And now Cameron is talking about housing.
12.18pm BST
Some more Twitter reaction as Cameron pulls the rabbits out of the hat faster than in most of his previous speeches:
12.16pm BST
Tax cuts - Snap summary: These are two very significant tax cuts. Lifting the basic rate threshold to £12,500 is a Lib Dem policy, which will benefit low-earners - but not those out of work. And lifting the 40p threshold significantly is something that will appeal enormously to what the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Mail call the middle class. It has been a key Ukip proposal.
12.14pm BST
Cameron says the government has lifted the income tax threshold. It will rise to £10,500 next year.
He wants to cut more taxes.
12.09pm BST
Cameron says he has seen the abuse of labour: houses with 15 people or more crammed into it.
To those gangmasters, he says the government will put a stop to this.
12.08pm BST
Cameron says anyone should be free to take a job.
But when companies take people on on zero-hours contracts, and stop them working for someone else, that is not a free market. That is a rigged marked.
12.07pm BST
And what do Labour say? They have opposed every change to welfare the government has made.
They sit their pontificating on poverty. But they left a generation on benefits.
12.06pm BST
Cameron says he wants to go further in terms of tackling unemployment; he wants to abolish youth unemployment.
Young people will have to earn or learn.
12.05pm BST
But Cameron backs what George Osborne said on Monday to companies.
We have cut your taxes. Now you must pay what you owe.
12.04pm BST
A quick round-up of Twitter reaction, starting with speculation about the controversy over Camerons claim that William Hague is the greatest living Yorkshireman:
Will PM spark #Yorkshire controversy declaring William Hague 'greatest living Yorkshireman' Isnt it Parky, Alan Bennett or Geoffrey Boycott?
12.04pm BST
Cameron says the UK is creating more jobs than the rest of the EU put together.
When Britain is creating jobs, that can only mean one thing: the Conservatives are back in government.
Here is a commitment: with the next Conservative government, we will always have the most competitive corporate taxes in the G20.
12.02pm BST
Cameron says if the plan for the last five years was about rescuing the economy, the plan for the next five years will be about you and your family, and helping people get on.
Other politicians will promise an easy life. Not me, he says.
12.00pm BST
Where do I want to take my country, Cameron asks.
He says he is not a complicated man. He has simple values.
11.57am BST
Cameron says he has had to govern in coalition. It is not what he wanted to do, but what he needed to do.
After 2015 he wants to lead a majority Conservative government, delivering Conservative policies and Conservative values.
11.57am BST
Cameron says he has had William Hague beside him for four years.
We all remember those lyrical tones: Some of you wont be here in 30 years time, he says, mimicking Hagues accent (not very well).
11.54am BST
Cameron says the heirs to the D Day veterans are in Afghanistan.
This year they are coming home. There is a round of applause for those who serve.
You have declared your allegiance. You are an enemy of the UK and you should expect to be treated as such.
11.53am BST
11.51am BST
Cameron says when people see our flag, in some of the most desperate times, they know what it stands for: freedom, justice.
On June 6, at Normandy, he was so proud of his country.
11.50am BST
Cameron is talking about visiting France for the D Day commemorations.
He remembers being accompanied with a veteran, Patrick. He is in the hall, and Cameron invites the audience to give him a round of applause. He gets a standing ovation.
11.49am BST
Cameron says a star was born during the Scottish referendum campaign: Ruth Davidson.
The week leading up to the referendum was the most anxious week of his life, he says.
11.48am BST
David Cameron is starting now.
(The party have not released a text in advance.)
Now we are one people in one union, and everyone here can be proud of that.
11.46am BST
The video is still going.
It shows a clip from PMQs, with Cameron saying Ed Miliband is like an arsonist who starts fires and then asks other people to put them out. Another clip shows Cameron telling Miliband he is happy with his team, and, given that Ed Balls is shadow chancellor, happy with Milibands too.
11.44am BST
David Cameron provides the voiceover to the video.
He says this is the team with the long-term plan to secure our economic future.
11.44am BST
If you refresh the page you can watch the speech live above.
11.41am BST
They are now showing a video.
11.41am BST
Gove says Ed Miliband has been going through parks, talking to people about what they want, like a one-man focus group.
But he cant offer people what they want: leadership.
11.37am BST
Gove says Help to Buy has helped 50,000 people own their home.
Crime has been cut, hate preachers have been deported, and extremist groups, thanks to the iron lady Theresa May, have been faced up to.
11.32am BST
Michael Gove is introducing David Cameron.
(So he is not totally invisible this week - see 10.56am.)
11.14am BST
Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, has just finished his speech to the conference.
There have not been a huge number of attacks on the Liberal Democrats from the conference platform, but Fallon did take a swipe at them.
And the Liberals ...
The only area of defence Liberal Democrats are interested in is downgrading our continuous-at-sea deterrent for a part-time deterrent sitting in a dockyard.
10.56am BST
So, after three and a half days, what have we learned from the Tory conference? Here are my thoughts.
1 Sharing power only seems to have made the Conservatives more rightwing. For the first time since 2009 this was a conference where they were unveiling a full Conservative agenda, for the manifesto, not policies to be enacted in coalition, and what has emerged is a party noticeably more hardline than the one David Cameron led five years ago. There have been a few shards of progressive Conservatism (Theresa May criticising the police over stop and search, Chris Grayling prioritising mental health services in prison, Nicky Morgan denouncing homophobic bullying), but mostly this has been a week of solid Thatcherism: welfare cuts, arch Euroscepticism, and some civil libertarian horrors. And - if the rumours about Camerons speech are right - a tax cut.
10.42am BST
David Cameron does not usually use his conference speech to make a surprise policy announcement. But this time were told he will. And the Suns Tom Newton Dunn says it will be a big tax cut aimed at lower-income voters.
David Cameron does indeed have a jumbo rabbit in his #CPC14 speech today. A big new tax move to help C2 voters especially, I hear.
Tory press office not planning to distribute Cameron speech until it is done because it apparently contains a couple of major rabbits
10.37am BST
ComRes has just released a poll it has carried out for ITV. It suggests the people think the Conservatives have a bad record on the NHS, on immigration, on tuition fees and on overseas aid (because people do not approve of aid spending rising so much.)
But they do approve of gay marriage, the poll suggests.
A majority (57%) of the British public think the Conservatives management of the NHS has been bad for Britain, while two thirds (65%) think that the partyshandling of immigration has been bad for Britain. A majority also think the changes to university tuition fees (55%), increasing spending on overseas aid (56%) have been bad for Britain.
The only Conservative policy seen by more of the British public as good for Britain than bad for Britain is the introduction of gay marriage.
10.04am BST
Heres more from the Ministry of Defence on the air strikes against Islamic State. This is from a MoD spokesman.
Following yesterdays strikes on the Isil terrorist organisation, Royal Air Force aircraft have seen further action overnight. Two Tornado GR4s from RAF Akrotiri, conducted an armed reconnaissance mission in support of Iraqi government forces west of Baghdad.
They were tasked to examine a location suspected of being used as an Isil command and control position. At the scene they were able to identify Isil activity and two vehicles, one of which was an armed pick up truck.
9.48am BST
Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, is addressing the conference later.
To coincide with this, the Ministry of Defence is announcing Royal Navy repair contracts worth £3.2bn. It says they will sustain 7,500 jobs in the UK.
9.31am BST
David Cameron has already finished his text but, if he does need any last-minute inspiration, my colleague Michael White has a great guide to the 10 top ingredients for a Tory speech.
9.01am BST
The RAF has been involved in further air strikes against Islamic State (Isis) in northern Iraq, the Ministry of Defence has announced.
2 Tornados from #RAF Akrotiri fire 4 Brimstone missiles against armed pick-up truck escort & #ISIL transport vehicle
DefSec: #RAF conduct further strikes against #ISIL west of Baghdad in #Iraq overnight.
8.38am BST
William Hague, the leader of the Commons, told Radio 5 Live that he had never heard of Arron Banks, the Tory donor who has defected to Ukip.
Ive never heard of him so we are not going to get too upset about that ... Its certainly not going to overshadow the prime ministers speech today that someone we havent heard of has gone to Ukip.
I think the conference has fully moved on from the defection of one MP to Ukip on Saturday. The gentleman you are talking about is not a senior figure in this party, not somebody I know personally at all.
Its up to the voters in the end, not people who are politically active and move about between parties - which happens in all directions. When I went to Clacton two weeks ago I was welcoming a Ukip councillor back to the Conservatives.
8.24am BST
Heres Michael Dugher, the shadow Cabinet Office minister, on the defection of Arron Banks from the Conservatives to Ukip.
David Cameron is haemorrhaging support and his authority is ebbing away. He cant control his party, who clearly have no confidence in his leadership.
And once again we see that Ukip are reliant on Tory money as well as Tory policy and Tory politicians, putting pay to the idea that they stand up for working people.
8.12am BST
Here is more from Arron Banks explaining why is is defecting to Ukip.
We are being dragged down to the lowest common denominator of financial growth when we should be looking to trade worldwide and should be basing our future prosperity on a long term global outlook. The Conservative party try to sell us the myth that EU reform is achievable when frankly all [David] Cameron can offer is tinkering around the edges. He is not even able to bring himself to say that he would support UK exit if his supposed reforms do not work.
I am delighted to welcome Arrons support to Ukip. His generosity will go a long way in our campaign. It shows a real maturation of Ukip that we are now attracting serious financial backers that will help secure our position in the premier league of politics. The other parties are losing councillors, MPs and backers to Ukip, not only voters, and they are all playing their part in changing the course of politics in the UK for good. Our peoples army is really starting to grow.
8.07am BST
Nigel Farage, the Ukip leader, has welcomed Arron Banks defection. He says it shows the party is now attracting serious financial backers.
I am delighted to welcome Arron Bank's support to UKIP. His generosity will go a long way in our campaign http://t.co/z1rV2wKa4J
UKIP is now attracting serious financial backers that will help secure our position in the premier league of politics
8.04am BST
Its the morning of David Camerons speech to the Conservative party conference and the Ukip spoiler machine is at it again, with the unveiling of its third defector in five days.
Arron Banks isnt a household name, but he has given more than £250,000 to the Tories since Cameron became leader and this morning he has announced he is defecting to Ukip, and giving the party £100,000.
Ive supported the Conservatives for a number of years but have come to the realisation that only Ukip supports my views.
Being a member of the EU is like having a first class ticket on the Titanic. Economically, remaining in the EU is unsustainable.
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