Alistair Darling speaks to conference, laying out our task to prepare and equip our country and economy to meet current and future challenges, to be leaders in global change.

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It's a pleasure to be here as only the second Chancellor since 1997.

And let us first recognise the great achievement of the longest serving Chancellor in modern times and the most successful Gordon Brown. And now the country knows his strength better than ever, after just 3 months as Prime Minister.

And let's recognise too the tremendous achievement of another man with a clear vision for the future of our country. The man who led us to three consecutive election victories - Tony Blair.

It's good to be back in Bournemouth. According to a recent survey, Bournemouth is the happiest place in the country. It seems, four out of five of the people in this city, the survey found, said they were happy with their lives. So with Labour down for the week, let's see what we can do for the 5th.

But even if Bournemouth isn't one of our natural bastions, the benefits of our Government touch places all over the country from Lerwick to Land's End.

We are here to serve the many not the few.

So I checked out the unemployment figures here in Bournemouth. I found out why people here are so happy. Just one and a half per cent unemployment in Bournemouth - down by two-thirds since 1997. And just over one per cent unemployment in the county of Dorset.

And I'll tell you better still. Because of measures like the New Deal and because of what we have done, youth unemployment in Bournemouth is down by 90 per cent since 1997.

That's what a Labour Government has delivered. And never forget that choice.

The New Deal under Labour.

The Old Deal under the Tories.

But we have our challenges and the past week has thrown up a few. It's been difficult. But we will come through this because we have built a strong and stable economy.

We deal with these challenges from a position of strength. And we do so by taking the right decisions for the long-term interests of our country. And that is exactly how we will continue - with confidence based on competence.

Tough decisions, sometimes hard ones. Sticking to our principles. Disciplined in our approach. Clear in direction.

That strength of purpose has built one of the strongest economies in the world. 10 years of continuous growth. A record not achieved by any other major economy. Not France, not Germany, not Japan, not America.

And everything I do, as we prepare and equip ourselves for change, is built on that stability and underpinned by the values which bring us together.

Opportunity for all. Creating new jobs for the future. Fairness for all. Aspiration - we know the people of this country want the very best for their families. So do we.

But last week was difficult. Difficult for Northern Rock savers, for us all. There are lessons to be learnt - and I will make the changes we need to ensure stability.

No government should ever be in the business of protecting executives who make the wrong call or bad decisions. My job is to protect ordinary savers. So we need to strengthen protection for ordinary savers. To give them confidence. Ensuring their savings in a bank or building society are guaranteed.

We need to be able to separate out ordinary savers money. Paying it out quickly. We need effective regulation in international markets too. Far greater openness and to prevent risky investments being hidden off the balance sheet. Effective supervision for banks, here and across the world.

It's in all our interests to learn from what's happened and we are ready to take the lead and take whatever action is needed. And, we will continue to take that action on the basis of the long term interests of our people and our country.

Last week, tells us something else. It shows how much and how fast the world is changing. Sometimes when people talk about globalisation they say, "what has this got to do with us?"

Well, last week shows what happens when an event in one part of the world can touch us all in just a few weeks. The time was when a small bank in America got in trouble it was bad news for that town, or state, but nowhere else.

But today, when a Florida householder defaults on his mortgage, the effects are felt, not just in America but across the world. In Europe. In Germany. And, yes, here in Britain.

This international instability is affecting not only us, but countries across the world. Which is why we need to work together and deal with these problems now. Let me very clear, the financial services industry in this country is strong. It has an international reputation. It is, and will always, of vital importance to this country. We are world leaders. And we want to keep it that way.

And globalisation, whether it is in the financial services, in business, in energy, has transformed the scale of the challenges we now face.

So our task now is to prepare and equip our country to meet these challenges. To be leaders in this global change.

We built a strong economy here because we had the courage to make the reforms needed. But the job is never done. The world never stands still. Nor can we. The pace of change is what defines our world and we must keep on facing up to that change.

Asia is now out producing Europe. China alone produces half the world's clothes, half the world's computers and more than half the world's digital electronics.

Together, with India, their share of world trade has more than doubled in less than 10 years. And both, looking to compete not at the bottom but the top.

These are massive challenges. There are some who just see it as a massive threat. But it is only a threat if you let it become one. I see it, not as a threat, but as a huge opportunity for Britain.

A decade ago, we took the decisions to put right the failures of the past. The New Deal to get people back to work.

Investment in education and health - doubled.

Next month, I'll set out our spending plans to let us make the changes we need in this new world.

And we can compete. Not on low wages and low expectations but on quality and excellence.

Britain turns out some of the best graduates. And education is one of our most successful exports. Students come here from all over the world because they see it as world class. And investment in education is the key to the future. Improving skills is essential.

So too is investment in science. We've doubled the science budget and we'll increase it again to almost £4 billion a year. Why? Because Britain is good at inventing and innovation. And we need to be to compete in this new world.

We are bringing research and industry closer together to develop the new products and services the world wants to buy. And British manufacturing is doing well, here and across the world.

And, of course, globalisation, has brought home another reality. Because only working together can we tackle the big issues.

Climate Change is an international problem that needs international solutions.
We are committed to a low carbon future, here and abroad. That's why we must encourage more low carbon industries. That's why we want all new houses to be zero carbon by 2016. And, that's why we will be the first country in the world to introduce legally enforceable carbon budgets.

On energy, the three big imperatives are to maintain security of supply, ensure affordability and drive down carbon emissions. To deliver all three at the same time, is one of the great challenges of the 21st century.

Our spending plans will help us to do more to meet our environmental obligations. That must now be one or our guiding priorities. The Stern Report has shown us how economic growth can be environmentally sustainable.

Let me give you a practical example of how that can be achieved. In transport. Britain's railways are already carrying record numbers of passengers because of the investment we are making. Good for passengers. Good for the economy. Good for the environment. That's the kind of virtuous circle we have to pursue in every sector of the economy.

And globalisation means more than ever before we must redouble our efforts to make poverty history here in our own country and in the world. Let me be absolutely clear: we will meet our international obligations in full.

Our priority is always to look forward and to see what more can be done. Here at home, we have lifted 600,000 children out of poverty. 10 million children and six million families gaining from tax credits. But it's not enough. We must do more. We must eradicate child poverty once and for all.

There is no more, absolute moral obligation.

But let us never forget what happened under the Tories. Child poverty didn't half. It doubled. That is the history. That is the difference. And that is the warning to anyone who might be tempted to think that returning to a Tory government would be a cost-free option.

And the hundreds of thousands of families, lifted out of poverty by Labour policies and Labour priorities over the past decade, would be the first to pay the price.

But let us also remember that none of our policies and priorities stand in isolation. All of them every objective that drives us are only deliverable on the basis of a strong economy that allows us to pay for them. It is only possible to keep on helping improve people's lives because of the strong economic foundations we've created.

As Chancellor, everything I do will be to maintain that strength and stability. I will continue the discipline essential to underpin it even when those decisions might be unpopular. Chancellors are not in politics to find a fan club. I am cautious and I will always be cautious with other people's hard earned savings and with our hard won, stable economy.

Inflation, interest rates and mortgage rates are historically low helping millions of people in this country.

We are the party of opportunity.

The Tories are the party of opportunism.

And their opportunism, their inconsistent and incoherent approach to the economy, demonstrates day after day, the threat they represent to the success of this country.

It is the luxury of opposition they don't always get held to account for everything they said last week or last month. And that's a luxury to which the Tories are welcome for a long time.

But just occasionally, we are entitled to draw attention to the dangerous nonsense that they talk. Let me give you one example. Just a few weeks ago, the Tories said there was "no need to continue to regulate the provision of mortgage finances, as it is the lending institutions", the banks, "taking the risk."

Does David Cameron, today, really think that there is no need to regulate the mortgage market?

We believe it is our duty to protect the public interest. And the Tory approach to tax and spend is incoherent. One day they want to spend more. Lots more. The next day, they promise unfunded tax cuts. Borrowing? They said they'll cut that too. Then they say they are going to stick to our spending totals. It just doesn't add up. And it's been tried before.

They promised to do exactly the same in 1992. And it didn't work. It was disastrous for our country. And David Cameron should know - he was there.

That's the way to instability, high interest rates, high mortgage rates, back to the Tory past.

We live in times of great change. People rightly want better for themselves and their families. It is a real privilege and an enormous responsibility being in Government and to be able to put in place the changes this country needs for the future.

We believe in a fair and just society. We must support the aspirations and hopes of everyone in this country. We have the experience and determination to face up to the challenges of a fast changing world. We have a vision of a successful Britain. A country to be proud of.

Once, they said we would never win again. Then, they said no Labour Government could win two terms. But the people returned us for a third. And if we stick to our sense of purpose, prepare our country for change, then together, with Gordon Brown, we will deliver for all the people.