Starmer to defend Reeves after claims that some ministers feel she misled them ahead of budget – UK politics live

Prime minister to give speech after report that some ministers are unhappy over handling of the budgetHere are two of the most level-headed members of the Westminster commentariat making the point that the Rachel Reeves feeding frenzy (see 9.53am) is getting a bit out of hand.This is from Heather Stewart, the Guardian’s economics editor (and former political editor) on Bluesky.This story is starting to make me feel I’m going slightly mad - maybe RR overdid the gloom, but the tax rises are paying for a) the welfare U-turns b) the £10bn-plus increase in headroom c) scrapping the two child limit d) bits of other spending eg higher local gov costs ‍♀️It was the most botched budget briefing since Truss… but this is increasingly wild. It is not an unsubstantiated “claim” that the OBR priced the productivity downgrade at £16bn in foregone revenue! Continue reading...