Conservative conference - as it happened: Boris Johnson denounced as 'irrelevant and offensive' from main stage
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Boris Johnson has been denounced from the stage of the Conservative Party conference as "irrelevant" and an "offensive person" by Lord Digby Jones for his contentious remarks about businesses.
It comes after the party was hit by a humiliating security gaffe in the official conference app, which allowed members of the public to access the contact details and mobile phone numbers of senior members of the government and prominent journalists.
On Sunday - the first day of the party's annual conference in Birmingham - a sizeable protest also took place in Birmingham as demonstrators demanded a second public vote on the final Brexit deal.
This liveblog has now closed - follow again tomorrow for day two of the Conservative Party conference
Brandon Lewis, the Conservative Party chairman, is now speaking. He says he wants to thank our "brilliant" prime minister, Theresa May.
"Throughout this week together we will set out new policies to help us deliver on the essential Conservative promise of opportunity for all," he says.
"But as the task begins at home we have to look at our own house. In our party.
"Because we can’t just talk about opportunity for all. We must act on it. It’s the right thing to do, but it also matters because if we don’t, we face an uncertain and – let’s be frank – an uncomfortable future.
"Our country is changing - becoming more diverse. Young people are increasingly politically active, inspired by social media, the referendum and political campaigns. New movements are emerging – putting issues like gender equality, fair treatment and equal opportunity at the very top of the agenda."
"I have set an ambition to ensure 50% of the people on our candidates’ list are women, with a plan to make it happen. Within two months of announcing that ambition, almost 100 women have signed up to take the first step on their journey to Parliament. That’s a great start," Lewis says.
"Because as we saw last week, the destructive and divisive spectre of socialism is back. The belief that the government knows how to run our lives better than we do has returned. The dangerous dogma that says there is no problem that can’t be solved by simply throwing more and more of your money at it, is alive once again," he says.
Lord Digby Jones is now on stage - he takes aim at the former foreign secretary for his attacks on business.
Lord Jones says the former foreign secretary is an "irrelevance an offensive person".
He also adds: "Jeremy Corbyn is to wealth creation what Diane Abbott is to mathematics."
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