Conference call

The Labour Party’s annual gathering is in full swing, with higher education back in force

When you step off the train at Liverpool Lime Street, you are greeted by two statues, neither of which are at much risk of cancellation. The two monuments represent the twin challenges facing the Labour Party at its conference this week.

The first is of the late comedian Ken Dodd, who—like the education secretary Kit Malthouse—was that rarest of things, a scouse Tory. Like the party Doddy once supported, he famously landed in hot water over tax.