Reeves criticised previous Conservatives government, accusing Liz Truss of sending mortgage costs “spiralling” with her mini-budget.

And in comments that will be seen as a swipe at the Labour mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, Reeves said: “There are still those who peddle the idea that we could just abandon economic responsibility and cast off any constraints on spending.

“They are wrong – dangerously so – and we need to be honest about what that choice would mean.”

Burnham has continued his vocal criticism of Sir Keir Starmer during Labour’s conference and has not ruled out a leadership bid.

However, he prompted a backlash from some Labour MPs after he suggested ministers were “in hock to the bond markets” – a reference to the government’s self-imposed rules limiting spending and borrowing.

Despite dismissing the Tories as an “irrelevance”, Reeves repeatedly used the tagline: “Don’t ever let anyone tell you that there’s no difference between a Labour government and a Conservative government.”

Urging Labour activists to take “pride in what we are achieving”, she listed some of the party’s key pledges, including recruiting new neighbourhood police and opening school breakfast clubs.

It has been a torrid few months for the chancellor, who sparked a temporary rise in government borrowing costs in July following a tearful appearance in the Commons, amid speculation about whether she could keep her role.

Meanwhile, Reeves is facing pressure from some Labour MPs to increase spending, with many calling for the government to scrap the two-child benefit cap.

Ministers have hinted they could lift the cap in the Budget – a move which would cost an estimated £3.5bn a year.

In June the government also abandoned plans which would have cut nearly £5bn from the benefits bill, in the face of a major backbench rebellion.

However, delegates watching her conference speech in the main hall seemed determined to buoy the chancellor, with a standing ovation when she took to the stage and another when she addressed a protester holding a Palestinian flag interrupted her speech.

Reeves told the heckler: “We understand your cause and we are recognising a Palestinian state. But we are now a party in government, not a party of protest.”