64 h. ago Wishaw MP calls on SNP to improve frontline services after spending review

Pamela Nash says the buck now stops with the SNP Scottish Government – and called on Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson to explain to their constituents why they have yet to see any tangible improvements in their communities.

Politics

65 h. ago Sir Sadiq Khan criticises Rachel Reeves over Spending Review

Sir Sadiq Khan criticises Rachel Reeves over Spending Review  BBC

Politics

3 d. ago Keir Starmer tells councils to pick up the bill for Labour’s spending commitments

As the row over the spending review continues, the prime minister has washed his hands of expected large increases in local taxation

Economics

3 d. ago Starmer: Spending review marks new phase after first year of ‘cleaning up mess’

Sir Keir Starmer said Labour spent most of its first year since winning power in July 2024 taking ‘tough but necessary decisions’.

Politics

3 d. ago 'Undoubtedly' public sector job cuts in wake of UK spending review, says John Swinney

John Swinney has however ruled out compulsory redundancies in the public sector.

Politics

3 d. ago Brits braced for tax rises as two thirds fear Rachel Reeves will need to hammer the public and firms or up borrowing to pay for Spending Review

Two thirds of voters (67 per cent) believe that the Chancellor's plans set out last week mean she will either hit them in the pocket or increase borrowing.

Economics

4 d. ago Treasury 'already drawing up tax rises for the Autumn' as grim poll shows just a fifth of Brits say Rachel Reeves had priorities right in Spending Review

Dividends and bank profits are among the areas being mooted for drumming up revenue to balance the books.

Economics

4 d. ago Reeves braced for OBR forecasts to blow £20bn hole in tax and spending plans

Downgrades by Treasury watchdog could force chancellor to raise taxes or cut spending at budget to meet fiscal rulesRachel Reeves is braced for revised forecasts by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to blow a £20bn hole in her tax and spending plans before the autumn budget.Even without changing the totals the chancellor set out in her spending review on Wednesday, a weaker forecast from the the Treasury’s independent watchdog could force her to find significantly more money at the budget to meet her “non-negotiable” fiscal rules. Continue reading...

Economics

5 d. ago Thousands more smokers to get help to quit after cash boost of at least £80 million

The bumper funding, announced in this week’s Spending Review, will help pay for smoking cessation programmes, including local stop smoking services which provide access to patches and gum and give dedicated advice and support

Economics

5 d. ago Voices: Rachel Reeves has bet all our money on Wes Streeting saving the NHS

With the cost of living and immigration being too severely impacted by outside factors, backing the NHS was the right choice – and delivering results on health is Labour’s best chance of winning the next election, writes John Rentoul

Economics

6 d. ago Voices: Starmer and Reeves are back from the brink – here’s what they must do next

After a spending review that came as a relief to many Labour backbenchers, the government must now start making the case for the ‘inevitable’ tax rises in the autumn that will be needed to deliver better public services, says Andrew Grice

Politics

6 d. ago Reeves faces welfare revolt after Labour rebels rejected an 'olive branch' designed to head off a Commons mutiny over benefit cuts

The Chancellor is facing a ferocious backlash from her own MPs over plans to trim £5 billion from the benefits bill.

Politics

6 d. ago Chancellor Rachel Reeves promises to 'change the future' in Wales visit

Ms Reeves was visiting Wales in the wake of her decision to allocate Wales £445m for rail projects in her multi-year spending review this week

Politics

6 d. ago Why there's plenty to like in Rachel Reeves' Spending Review for Edinburgh

The Chancellor’s Spending Review announcements should be welcomed, writes Edinburgh City Council leader Jane Megaher.

Politics

6 d. ago Voices: ‘Tax the rich first’: Readers demand fairer burden as Reeves faces fiscal squeeze

Our community overwhelmingly believes that to tackle the UK’s economic challenges fairly, the wealthy must pay their share through higher taxes and reforms, while calling on the government to move beyond austerity and provide clear, responsible funding plans

Politics

6 d. ago Police 'won't prioritise phone thefts and shoplifting' with fewer bobbies on the beat as a result of Rachel Reeves' spending review, sources claim

The Chancellor's plans for a 2.3 per cent rise in police spending between 2023-24 and 2028-29 has dismayed police leaders, who insist the funding will leave a £1.2 billion shortfall.

Economics

7 d. ago Keir Starmer must come to the defence of his chancellor’s spending review

Editorial: In spite of Rachel Reeves’s much-vaunted increase in MoD expenditure, a rise to 2.6 per cent of GDP can only be achieved by draining the overseas aid budget, reallocating intelligence agency funds, and other sleights of hand. When the prime minister faces Nato leaders, including Donald Trump, he will have no choice but to spin the numbers

Politics

7 d. ago Finance convener calls on Scottish Government to ensure North Lanarkshire benefits from Chancellor’s spending review

Councillor Andrew Duffy-Lawson has urged the government at Holyrood to ensure that North Lanarkshire receives its fair share of the recently announced investment in Scottish public services as a result of the announcement from Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

Politics

7 d. ago Rachel Reeves hit with headache after economy shrinks amid fresh fears of tax hikes

The Office for National Statistics said the UK economy shrank by 0.3% in April. Meanwhile, experts are warning that council tax bills will rise following Chancellor Rachel Reeves's spending review

Economics

7 d. ago Poorest Brits to benefit most from Rachel Reeves's Spending Review

The poorest Brits will benefit most from Rachel Reeves’s public sector spending spree but tax rises look likely in the autumn, think tank the Resolution Foundation has said

Politics