7 h. 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

8 h. 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

10 h. ago Britain on track to become a ‘National Health State’, says thinktank

Resolution Foundation says half of all public spending will be allocated to the NHS and social care by the end of the decadeBusiness live – latest updatesBritain is on track to become a “National Health State” where half of all public spending is allocated to the NHS and social care by the end of the decade, according to a leading thinktank.Rachel Reeves used her spending review on Wednesday to prioritise billions of pounds for the NHS as she outlined Labour’s priorities up to the next general election, while squeezing funding for other areas. Continue reading...

Events

10 h. 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

10 h. ago Voices: First the spending review, now the economy – what else lies in wait for Rachel Reeves?

Official figures showed UK plc plunged into the red in April, contracting by 0.3 per cent. There is no sugar-coating how bad of a result that is for the chancellor, writes James Moore

Economics

11 h. ago Reeves only a ‘gnat’s whisker’ from having to raise taxes in autumn, says IFS – UK politics live

Institute for Fiscal Studies says figures for projected departmental efficiencies savings from Treasury are not credibleReeves gambles on ‘renewing Britain’ to win voters’ trustRachel Reeves is now on ITV’s Good Morning Britain. Susannah Reid and Richard Madeley are interviewing her.Q: You must be disappointed about the growth figures? Continue reading...

Politics

11 h. ago Tax rises 'almost inevitable' as IFS torches Rachel Reeves' spending plans warning NHS and defence will need topping up and cost

IFS director Paul Johnson said he would be 'very surprised indeed' if heath and defence funding did not need topping up before the next election.

Events

12 h. ago Tax hikes will come if economy shrinks any further, IFS warns Rachel Reeves

In a scathing assessment, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) suggested the Treasury was at times ‘making up the numbers’

Events

12 h. ago IFS torches Rachel Reeves' spending plans warning NHS and defence will need topping up and cost

IFS director Paul Johnson said he would be 'very surprised indeed' if heath and defence funding did not need topping up before the next election.

Events

12 h. ago Voices: Yes, ‘Renewal’ Reeves needs to raise taxes – but how will she pull it off?

The chancellor’s fiscal headroom is already compromised by her commitment to tackle child poverty, writes Sean O’Grady. So she needs luck – and to be more boring than ever – to raise the revenue she desperately needs

Politics

13 h. ago Reeves slaps down Sadiq Khan for saying Met Police will have to impose cuts after spending review

London mayor Sir Sadiq warns the capital will have fewer officers in a rare ‘red on red’ clash with the Labour chancellor

Events

14 h. 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

15 h. ago The UK is turning into a 'National Health State', experts say after Rachel Reeves' spending review

The Resolution Foundation warned that funding for the NHS was increasingly coming at the expense of other public services

Science

15 h. ago Rachel Reeves refuses to rule out Autumn Budget tax rises as economy shrinks 0.3% in April

Latest GDP estimate worse than the 0.1% fall expected by economists

Economics

16 h. ago Rachel Reeves' spending splurge plans are ALREADY in chaos after GDP fell 0.3% in April

GDP was down 0.3 per cent in April, worse than analysts had expected, and raising more questions about the realism of the Chancellor's splurge on services.

Events

17 h. 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

17 h. 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

21 h. ago ANDREW NEIL: Starmer's claim to be 'investing in Britain's renewal' is delusional drivel in a class of its own

'Our first job was to stabilise the economy and public finances,' Keir Starmer tweeted yesterday morning, a few hours before Rachel Reeves delivered Labour's spending plans.

Politics

23 h. ago A reckless splurge we (and our children) will be paying off for years: Voters brace for tax hikes as Rachel Reeves embarks on unprecedented spending spree

In a return to Labour's tax-and-spend approach, the Chancellor set out plans to 'invest' a staggering £4 trillion to fund 'the renewal of Britain'.

Economics

25 h. 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