Sun, 30 Nov 2025

Sun, 30 Nov 2025 Reeves denies she misled public over UK's finances in run-up to Budget

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch says she's not satisfied with the chancellor's denial of lying and called on her to resign.

* Chancellor Rachel Reeves has rejected claims that she misled the public about the nation's finances in the run-up to her Budget.
* She was challenged on the BBC to explain why she repeatedly warned about a downgrade to the UK's economic productivity forecasts before the Budget.
* It emerged that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) told her in mid-September that the public finances were in better shape than widely thought, but Reeves omitted to mention a forecast of higher wages.
* Reeves said she was "upfront" about her decision-making and that OBR figures showed there had been "less fiscal space than there was".
* Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch repeated her call for the chancellor to quit, saying Reeves had "lied to the public" with an overly pessimistic impression of the public finances.
* Badenoch claimed that Reeves used the negative forecast as a "smokescreen" to raise taxes and fund welfare increases.
* Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to back Reeves' budget decisions in a speech on Monday, saying they will help tackle cost of living pressures and lower inflation.
* The Conservatives have accused Reeves of breaking her manifesto commitment on taxation by freezing income tax thresholds, but she said she had to respond to global turbulence and productivity downgrades.
* Badenoch said she was "absolutely not" satisfied with Reeves' explanation and that she should instead have cut welfare spending.
* Tory shadow chancellor Mel Stride has written to the Financial Conduct Authority asking it to investigate "possible market abuse" by people working in the Treasury and Downing Street in the run-up to the Budget.
* The SNP, Reform UK, and Liberal Democrats have also raised questions about Reeves' conduct surrounding the Budget.
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