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Sir keir starmer have insisted that there was “no misrepresentation” on their part chancellor He was then accused of lying about Britain’s financial situation Budget with questions Growing up about your future.
Prime Minister Took the unusual step of fighting by giving a speech only after five days Rachel Reeves presented the budgetBecause he faced a barrage of questions over whether he had authorized them to mislead the public on the real state of the economy.
The row centers on a press conference given by Ms Reeves in November, in which she warned about the state of the public finances and suggested income tax May have to go upstairs.
It has since emerged that she failed to disclose information from the office Budget Accountability (OBR) revealed that tax receipts were better than expected, Ahead of the announcement of £26bn worth of tax rises in the Budget,
However, he was the only one to resign, with demands for the Chancellor to step down for allegedly misleading the public. OBR Chairman Richard Hughes on Monday eveningIt comes just hours after the publication of a scathing internal investigation into how the organization inadvertently leaked budget details before Ms Reeves gave a speech in the Commons last Wednesday,
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said Ms Reeves was using Mr Hughes as a “human shield” – after claiming he had “lied to the public” – and she should be sacked.
PM is speaking after 24 hours Ms. Reeves denied The man who lied over the state of public finances ahead of the Budget was repeatedly forced to go on the defensive as he delivered a speech highlighting his government’s “moral mission” in tackling child poverty.
He said: “There was no misrepresentation, and I don’t at all accept – and I was getting the figures – being told that the OBR productivity review meant you got £16 billion less than you would otherwise have found had you got an easier starting point.
“Yes, of course, all the other data needs to be taken into account. But we started the process with much less than we would have otherwise.”
There is no pretense that this is a good starting point, he said, adding that at one point he thought Labor would be violating its manifesto, in an apparent reference to canceled plans to raise the basic rate of income tax.
He said: “Later, it became possible to do so without violating the manifesto. Given the choice between the two, I did not want to violate the manifesto, and that’s why we came to the decisions that we did.”
As Sir Keir gave his speech at a community center in the City of London, Ms Reeves traveled to an investment event in Wales, and thus avoided being forced to explain her actions in an emergency statement in the Commons.
Instead his deputy, Chief Treasury Secretary James Murray, was tasked with repairing the damage to the government’s reputation.
Speaking at the programme, the Chancellor rejected claims from an unnamed minister that the Cabinet was not told “at any point” about the “reality” of the OBR forecasts.
“You would never expect the Prime Minister and the Chancellor to look at all the detailed data,” he said.
“Cabinet is briefed on the budget numbers on the morning of the Budget. Of course, we look at things that affect individual government departments, but the full details of the Budget should not be provided until the Chancellor presents the Budget.
“Apparently, this time, it was leaked early, but not by Treasury.”
The Chancellor has said that the OBR’s forecast shows a £4.2 billion surplus against their borrowing rules, which does not take into account the welfare reform U-turn or the abolition of the two-child benefit cap.
It came as ministers openly described how Sir Keir and Ms Reeves had misled them ahead of the Budget.
a minister told Independent That the budget outcome was “less than ideal”.
Many MPs complained about a poor communications strategy, which has plagued the government since it was elected last July.
One Labor MP said: “We need to look at who Rachel is working for and whether she has been given license to abridge the budget the way it has been doing for months.”
Another asked: “Why didn’t we have a clear message before this Budget on child poverty?”
Some noted that both Sir Keir and Ms Reeves had opposed getting rid of the two-child benefit limit when elected last year, before making it the centerpiece of this budget following pressure from Labor MPs.
But MPs were also angry after ministers claimed they had been “misled”.
One MP said: “People need to keep their heads down. We’ve just lifted the two-child benefit limit, we should celebrate that and unite behind it. I’m not sure what the minister is doing.”
There were concerns that allies of Health Secretary Wes Streeting might try to exploit this as a means to launch a coup and oust Sir Keir.
Meanwhile, Ms Badenoch was applauded by business representatives at a question and answer session in London when she claimed Ms Reeves had lied.
Later, he claimed the Chancellor was trying to use Mr Hughes as a “human shield” after he resigned after the watchdog published a report saying the leak was the worst failure in its 15-year history.
Mr Hughes, who has served as chair of the OBR since 2020 and was re-appointed to the job for a second five-year term in July this year, said he was resigning to allow the OBR to “move quickly from this regrettable incident”.
In the Commons, Shadow Chancellor Sir Mel Stride said. “The Chancellor’s credibility is at stake, and the disgrace of this House must be added to his long list of failings in relation to these matters.”
Investigations have been called for by the Financial Conduct Authority and the government’s ethics adviser Sir Laurie Magnus.