58 h. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s welfare rebellion: Starmer must learn from his mistakes | Editorial

A poorly devised cuts policy was mis-sold as reform and MPs were dismissed when they pointed out the problemA clash between the government and Labour MPs over disability benefits was foreseeable long before this week’s Commons rebellion. That doesn’t mean a crisis was inevitable. Compromise might have been reached before the 11th-hour climbdown that averted a defeat in parliament.The conflagration that burned a lot of Sir Keir Starmer’s authority was all the greater because trust had broken down. The twin causes were failure of political judgment in Downing Street and bad policy. The prime minister underestimated the potency of MPs’ objections to the withdrawal of personal independence payment (Pip) from disabled people, and overestimated the capacity of his whips to bully and cajole his party into accepting the changes.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to...

Politics

2 w. ago Leaders on both sides of the border urge completion of Casement Park

A UK Government pledge of £50 million for the development of the west Belfast GAA stadium was included in Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ spending review.

Politics

2 w. 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

3 w. 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

3 w. 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

3 w. 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

3 w. 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

3 w. ago Gregor Poynton MP welcomes huge investment in Scotland following spending review announcement

Gregor Poynton MP has welcomed the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Spending Review, which confirms billions of pounds of investment to Scotland.

Economics

3 w. ago 'Sheer incompetence': John Swinney urged to cut taxes amid £1.1bn economic performance gap

The Scottish Conservatives say the First Minister should cut taxes following the Chancellor’s spending review.

Economics

3 w. ago Tax rises will come if economy shrinks further, IFS warns Rachel Reeves after Spending Review

The Spending Review delivered by Chancellor Rachel Reeves has had a mixed response.

Events

3 w. ago Rachel Reeves came out fighting — but there are big problems down the line

Analysis: Chancellor accused of unveiling a spending review which is ‘full off numbers, few of them useful’

Politics

3 w. ago Acorn project funding uncertainty as 'final decision' still to be made by Chancellor Rachel Reeves

Concerns have emerged over how much funding the Chancellor will hand over for the Acorn project.

Politics

3 w. ago Rachel Reeves seized her moment – whatever the future brings, Labour’s economic course is now set | Martin Kettle

The chancellor is no mere technocrat: her spending review revealed a visceral commitment to social and economic mobilityThe consensus has long been that the 2025 spending review would be a defining moment for Keir Starmer’s government. For once, the consensus proved spot-on. The government’s main priorities were set out on Wednesday in a blizzard of Commons announcements from Rachel Reeves, some economically substantive, others more for show. The upshot is that the shape of the British state, as Labour intends it, is now decided until the eve of the next election.There are further crossroads still to come, some of them major, as the years covered by the review unroll. Taxes are likely to rise, probably as soon as the autumn budget, to pay for Reeves’s big ticket boosts on Wednesday for defence, health and housing. Council tax could rise too, with possibly dramatic results. The review’s emphasis on capital spending means current spending could be squeezed again, perhaps heralding pay...

Economics

3 w. ago Rachel Reeves pumps cash into NHS with 4million more tests and procedures to cut waits

The NHS and defence were big winners from the Chancellor's Spending Review as Rachel Reeves set out the Government's spending plans for the rest of the decade

Economics

3 w. ago These unanswered questions could be Rachel Reeves’s downfall

Analysis: Chancellor accused of unveiling a spending review which is ‘full off numbers, few of them useful’

Politics

3 w. ago Rachel Reeves has given the Starmer administration a new narrative: Investment, growth and expansion

Editorial: Alongside the Brexit reset, new trade deals and planning reforms, the chancellor’s spending review should result in a stronger economy with a better long-term growth rate. But it will take time

Politics

3 w. ago There may be trouble ahead, but Labour should stick to the plan for national renewal

Editorial: With the Brexit reset, new trade deals and planning reforms, the chancellor’s spending review could result in a stronger economy with a better long-term growth rate. But it will take time

Events

3 w. ago This was the final proof the Chancellor has no inkling of the mess this country is in: STEPHEN GLOVER

No one will remember Rachel Reeves 's speech yesterday or her fantasy spending review for long, possibly including the Chancellor herself.

Politics

3 w. ago 'Bombshell' council tax rise warning over Rachel Reeves' police funding plans

Chancellor accused of ‘relying on a hidden council tax bombshell to fund a half-hearted rise in police funding’ as she outlines Spending Review

Events

3 w. ago The Guardian view on Labour’s spending review: the chancellor tightened belts and loosened seams | Editorial

The government offers capital investment and fiscal prudence but real-terms department cuts and grand promises could strain political credibilityBrexit’s ghost haunts a Labour spending review intended to lay the foundations for a second term. Its headlines echo the twin themes of the referendum campaign: control immigration, fund the NHS. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, said she would end the use of hotels for asylum seekers “in this parliament” saving £1bn a year, while NHS spending will rise by 3% a year. Ms Reeves framed it as a politics of security and compassion. Yet it reads as Brexit’s populist promises, filtered through Westminster orthodoxy.The risk is that this is all slogan and very little solution. The asylum savings are speculative, and the annual increase in NHS budgets is below its historical average. There are also real-terms cuts or essentially flat budgets for key departments such as transport, education and local government. The Home Office faces cuts deeper than a...

Politics