What Liz Truss’s Tory conference speechwriters will need to do

A dig at Starmer, a mention of Ukraine – Sean O’Grady ponders what the PM might try in Birmingham

Many of those in the hall in Birmingham will have voted for Truss to be leader (Reuters)

One way of assessing the scale of the task facing Liz Truss at next week’s Conservative Party conference is to imagine drafting her speech for her. It’s a tough gig for anyone connected with Team Truss, even with an unusually sympathetic audience. After all, many of those in the hall in Birmingham, probably a majority, voted for her to be leader.

On the other hand, at 57 percent of the members, hers was hardly a landslide win. If they’d been given the chance, many would have opted for Kemi Badenoch or Penny Mordaunt and a lot of them wanted to stick with Boris Johnson anyway. Since Truss won, not quite a month ago, events may have provoked some buyers’ remorse. Some of her own MPs will also be staying home. Fortunately, the next Budget, to fix the mess made in the mini-Budget, is some weeks away so little may be said about its unpleasant contents.

The first few sentences of the leader’s speech next Thursday write themselves, and will get her off to a good start. There’ll be some lavish praise for the Queen and her example of lifetime service; and some equally lavish but less convincing praise for Johnson and all he did for the party. A couple of standing ovations guaranteed, there, no matter how wooden her delivery is. She might be wise to thank her supporters, and pledge to keep the party united. A brisk mention of the other candidates might draw a line under the recent bloody leadership election. Staying on the winning streak, Truss can then devote a reasonable chunk of oration praising Volodymyr Zelensky, who, if she has any sense, will be beamed in from Kyiv on a giant screen.