Jeremy Hunt: There were mistakes in mini-budget – and some taxes will go up

Published

3 years ago

October 17, 2022

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The new chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said there “were mistakes” in Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget.

Speaking to Sky News on Saturday, Mr Hunt said: “It was a mistake when we were going to be asking for difficult decisions across the board on tax and spending to cut the rate of tax paid by the very wealthiest.”

Hunt warns of ‘difficult decisions’ – follow politics latest

He added that it was an error to “fly blind” by not accompanying the ‘fiscal event’ with an economic forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility, which many argue sent the financial markets into turmoil.

On tax cuts, he said: “We won’t have the speed of tax cuts we were hoping for and some taxes will go up.”

Asked if this would mean a return to austerity, he replied: “I don’t think we’re talking about austerity in the way we had it in 2010. But we’re going to have to take tough decisions on both spending and tax.”

The comments signal a plan to up-end the prime minister’s entire economic strategy, in an extraordinary rebuke of the pledges that brought her into office.

Mr Hunt was appointed chancellor on Friday, an hour after his predecessor Kwasi Kwarteng was sacked after just 38 days in the job.

While his appointment was welcomed by some Tory MPs as “an experienced pair of hands”, others questioned why Mr Kwarteng was the one who had to go when he was pursuing policies Ms Truss espoused in her leadership campaign.

At a hastily-arranged news conference in Downing Street on Friday, the prime minister dismissed calls for her resignation, saying she was “absolutely determined to see through what I have promised”.

But announcing another U-turn, she said: “It is clear that parts of our mini-budget went further and faster than markets were expecting, so the way we are delivering our mission right now has to change.”

Mr Kwarteng’s plans to drop the planned rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%, were therefore being scrapped, she announced, saving the Exchequer £18bn a year.

Is Jeremy Hunt now more powerful than the PM?

Rob Powell

Political correspondent

@robpowellnews

Jeremy Hunt has confirmed that Prime Minister Liz Truss’s economic vision is not only dead, but that the immediate actions of this administration will be to do almost exactly the opposite of what the prime minister promised during the summer leadership campaign.

This was a cold, hard reality check from a chancellor who is being upfront about the fact that his primary purpose is to put out the fires started by the government he’s just joined and restore some semblance of credibility to the UK economy.

Some taxes will rise, some will be cut more slowly than expected, and public spending will be trimmed with every department asked to find savings.

Does this mean pushing back the 2023 cut to the basic rate of income tax? Can the Ministry of Defence still expect its funding increase? Is there any chance of public sector pay rises reaching anywhere near inflation?

Politically, there is an argument to be made that Jeremy Hunt is now more powerful than the prime minister.

‘The last few weeks have been very tough’

Asked why he agreed to take on the difficult job of sorting out the public finances, the new chancellor said he wants to “do the right thing by the British people”.

But he added: “I want to be honest with people, we have some very difficult decisions ahead.

“The last few weeks have been very tough, but the context of that is coming out of a pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis.

“No chancellor can control the markets, but what I can do is show that we can pay for our tax and spending plans and that is going to need some very difficult decisions.”

He said that all government departments would have to “find more efficiencies than they were planning to find”.

However, he declined to give any specific commitments ahead of the fiscal statement on October 31.

Asked if the NHS will still get the money that was promised in the health and social care levy, he said “the government’s already made that commitment”.

He added: “I’m not going to make any specific commitments about specific departments now, or indeed on the tax side about specific taxes because we have to look at these things in the round. And we have to make sure as we take these very difficult decisions, we’re honest with people about the situation we face.”

‘This is a disaster’

David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, questioned how cuts can be made given the pressure public services are under.

He said the market turmoil seen in recent weeks is a “crisis made in Number 10” and called for a general election.

He said: “As you listen to Jeremy Hunt what you hear is despite long queues in the NHS, it’s now set to get worse, despite rising class sizes in Britain we can expect our education to get worse, and with crime soaring across many communities in the country, we need police officers.

“Are they are now going to back-pedal on those undertakings that they’ve previously made?

“This is a disaster and the only way to deal with a disaster is a general election and to set our country on a certain path for the next five years.”

He claimed Ms Truss had “no mandate” for her policies.

“We cannot live in an oligarchy effectively where the Conservatives choose who leads them and as a consequence gives us a prime minister with no mandate at all to make, now, the swingeing cuts that we’re about to see.”

Mr Hunt’s comments may only add to the sense among some Tory MPs that Ms Truss is increasingly powerless in Downing Street.

Will Walden, Boris Johnson’s director of communications when he was mayor of London, called Mr Hunt an effective “caretaker prime minister”, while former Conservative leader Lord Hague warned Ms Truss’s premiership “hangs by a thread”.

Heated messages shared in Conservative Party WhatsApp groups after Ms Truss’s hastily-arranged Downing Street press conference show the party is divided about the next steps, with some MPs calling for the PM to be replaced by Rishi Sunak or Penny Mordaunt.

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World

UK joins NATO operation to bolster Europe’s eastern flank after Russian drone incursions into Poland

Published

1 hour ago

September 12, 2025

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UK joins NATO operation to bolster Europe's eastern flank after Russian drone incursions into Poland

NATO is to bolster Europe’s eastern flank, including the use of UK military resources, after Russia’s “reckless and unacceptable” violation of Polish airspace.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte announced operation ‘Eastern Sentry’ on Friday, involving the deployment of equipment on the border with Belarus, Russia and Ukraine to deter potential Russian aggression.

Poland shot down Russian drones which flew over the country on Wednesday, something the military alliance has portrayed as an attempt by Moscow to test NATO’s military response.

It underlines long-held concerns about the potential expansion of Russia’s three-year war in Ukraine.

Russia said its drones went astray because they were jammed, but European leaders believe the incursions were a deliberate provocation by Russia.

“It’s reckless and unacceptable. We can’t have Russian drones entering allied airspace,” Mr Rutte told a news conference.

He added that allies, including the UK, France, Germany and Denmark, have so far committed to the mission with others set to join.

In a statement, the UK’s Ministry of Defence said: “The UK is fully committed to playing our part in NATO’s Eastern Sentry following the reckless and dangerous airspace violations by Russia”. It added that the details of the UK’s contribution would be announced soon.

Yvette Cooper visited Ukraine on Friday, her first visit to the country since becoming foreign secretary after a cabinet shake-up by Sir Keir Starmer.

Ms Cooper described her trip, which included a meeting with the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as a demonstration of solidarity with Ukraine.

“The UK will not stand idly by as Putin continues his barbaric invasion of Ukraine,” Ms Cooper said, noting what she said was the Russian president’s “complete disregard for sovereignty” by sending drones into NATO airspace.

Prince Harry also made a surprise visit to Kyiv on Friday, where he met with wounded service members.

NATO already has substantial forces in eastern Europe, including thousands of troops, but the alliance did not explain how many additional forces would be involved in the new operation.

Speaking at the alliance’s Brussels headquarters, US General Alexus Grynkewich told reporters the additional resources will enable the alliance to “plug gaps in the line” and concentrate forces wherever they’re needed while improving communications across NATO’s entire eastern flank.

NATO detailed a modest number of additional military assets – including two F-16 fighter jets and a frigate from Denmark, three Rafale fighter jets from France and four Eurofighter jets from Germany.

The announcement also coincided with a joint military exercise involving thousands of Russian and Belarusian troops, which began on Friday.

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Meanwhile, new measures were announced by the UK against Russia on Friday.

They included bans on 70 vessels the UK says are part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” that transports Russian oil in defiance of sanctions.

Some 30 individuals and companies – including Chinese and Turkey-based firms – were also sanctioned for their part in supplying Russia with electronics, chemicals, explosives and other weapons components.

Donald Tusk, the Polish prime minister, dismissed Donald Trump’s suggestion that the drone incursion into Poland may have been “a mistake”.

“We would also wish that the drone attack on Poland was a mistake,” Mr Tusk wrote on X. “But it wasn’t. And we know it.”

US-led efforts to steer Moscow and Kyiv toward a peace settlement have so far failed to progress.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said talks to end the war were currently on “pause” even though channels of communication remain open.

World

Russia-Belarus drills begin as tensions high after drone incursion in Poland

Published

7 hours ago

September 12, 2025

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Russia-Belarus drills begin as tensions high after drone incursion in Poland

Thousands of troops are taking part in a joint military exercise between Russia and Belarus, as tensions with the EU run high following a Russian drone incursion into Polish airspace earlier this week.

The Zapad joint military exercise which began on Friday will involve drills in both Russia and Belarus as well as in the Baltic and Barents seas, the Russian defence ministry said.

Belarusian defence officials initially said about 13,000 troops would participate in the drill, but in May, its defence ministry said that would be cut nearly in half.

It comes just two days after Poland, with support from its NATO allies, shot down Russian drones over its airspace.

Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Friday morning hit back at a suggestion by US President Donald Trump on Thursday that the incursion may have been a “mistake”.

He said in a post on X: “We would also wish that the drone attack on Poland was a mistake. But it wasn’t. And we know it.”

Russia said its forces had been attacking Ukraine at the time of the incursions and that it had not intended to hit any targets in Poland.

Friday also saw Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper travelling to Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv on the same day the UK announced fresh sanctions against Moscow.

Prince Harry was also in Kyiv for a surprise visit to help with the recovery of military personnel seriously injured in the three-year war with Russia.

Ms Cooper, who was appointed foreign secretary last week, posted about her visit on X saying: “The UK’s support for Ukraine is steadfast. I am pleased to be in Kyiv on my first visit as Foreign Secretary.”

The UK’s new sanctions include bans on 70 vessels that Britain says are part of Russia’s “shadow fleet” that transports Russian oil in defiance of sanctions already in place.

Some 30 individuals and companies – including Chinese and Turkey-based firms – have also been sanctioned for their part in supplying Russia with electronics, chemicals, explosives and other weapons components.

Meanwhile on the frontline, Ukrainian drones struck Russia’s oil-loading Primorsk port overnight, an SBU official said.

The attack caused fires and suspended oil-loading operations, the official added.

Russian defence systems also intercepted and destroyed 221 Ukrainian drones overnight.

World

Prince Harry makes surprise visit to Ukraine

Published

13 hours ago

September 12, 2025

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Prince Harry makes surprise visit to Ukraine

Prince Harry has made a surprise visit to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, a spokesperson for the royal has said.

Harry, who served 10 years in the British Army, visited the city at the invitation of the Ukrainian government.

The Duke of Sussex travelled to the capital to help with the recovery of military personnel seriously injured in the three-year war with Russia.

Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper will also be travelling to Kyiv on Friday in what will be her first foreign trip since being appointed to the job last week.

Her visit coincides with the UK launching a new package of Russia-related sanctions targeting ships carrying Russian oil as well as companies and individuals supplying electronics, chemicals and explosives used to make Russian weapons.

It comes as Russia and Belarus began a major joint military exercise on on NATO’s doorstep on Friday, just two days after Poland, with support from its NATO allies, shot down suspected Russian drones over its airspace.

The Zapad-2025 exercise – a show of force by Russia and its close ally – will involve drills in both countries and in the Baltic and Barents seas, the Russian defence ministry said.

Meanwhile on the frontline, Russian defence systems intercepted and destroyed 221 Ukrainian drones overnight,
including nine over the Moscow region, the ministry said on Friday.

The duke told the Guardian while on an overnight train to Kyiv: “We cannot stop the war but what we can do is do everything we can to help the recovery process.

“We can continue to humanise the people involved in this war and what they are going through.

“We have to keep it in the forefront of people’s minds. I hope this trip will help to bring it home to people because it’s easy to become desensitised to what has been going on.”

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Harry, who served two tours in Afghanistan, previously travelled to Ukraine in April, when he visited war victims as part of his work with wounded veterans.

The prince visited the Superhumans Center, an orthopaedic clinic in Lviv that treats and rehabilitates wounded military personnel and civilians.

Earlier this week, Harry said the King is “great” after he reunited with him at Clarence House for a private tea.

It was their first meeting in 19 months and lasted just 54 minutes.

The last time the father and son saw each other was in February 2024 when the prince flew to the UK after the monarch announced his cancer diagnosis.

Harry and his wife Meghan Markle have lived in California since they quit roles as senior working royals in March 2020.