Jeremy Hunt delays Halloween economic statement
Jeremy Hunt has delayed the announcement of the government’s economic plan from Halloween to 17 November, saying it will help ministers make “difficult decisions… that stand the test of time”.
A medium term fiscal statement was due to be delivered by the chancellor in the Commons on 31 October – along with a forecast from the Office for Budget Responsibility – after Liz Truss’s tax slashing mini-budget last month left a blackhole in government finances and the markets in turmoil.
But it will now be put back by more than two weeks and be turned into a full autumn statement – expanding its remit and providing longer term plans.
Mr Hunt, who remains as chancellor in Rishi Sunak’s new cabinet, said he had made the recommendation to the new prime minister to ensure any decisions are based on “accurate economic forecasts”.
And he said he was “willing to make choices that are politically embarrassing if they’re the right thing to do for the country”.
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The chancellor also revealed the autumn statement would include measures to make debt fall “over the medium term”.
“Our number one priority is economic stability and restoring confidence that the United Kingdom is a country that pays its way,” said Mr Hunt.
“But it is also extremely important the statement is based on the most accurate possible economic forecasts and forecasts of public finances.”
The Bank of England is due to make an announcement on interest rates on 3 November, meaning the original government statement would have come ahead of the decision.
Asked if it was wise to change it now, Mr Hunt said Mr Sunak’s entrance to Number 10 meant there was “the prospect of much longer term stability for the economy in the country – and in that context, a short two and a half week delay is the best way we will make sure that it is the right decisions we take”.
Rishi Sunak kept Jeremy Hunt in post after he became prime minister on Tuesday.
The chancellor added: “There has been a lot of market turbulence even in the last 48 hours, and the question is how you deal with that turbulence to make sure that the very, very important, very difficult decisions that I and the prime minister have to make are the right ones – decisions that stand the test of time and do the right thing for people at home who are worried about their mortgages, their jobs, the cost of living, the bills and so on.
“And for that reason, accuracy in the forecasts both around public finances and economic growth is very important, and that’s why this is the right decision and a prudent decision.”
What’s in a name?
By calling the 17 November announcement an “autumn statement”, the Treasury is signalling that this is a bigger deal than the announcement originally envisaged, unattractively known as the medium term fiscal statement.
However, it is also still significant they are not calling it either a budget, with a full review of tax and spending measures, or a spending review, where every government department’s budgets are set for years to come.
The job of the statement is to identify the size of the black hole the government needs to fill, and how they are going to fill it. It will be accompanied by the Office for Budget Responsibility growth forecast.
Given the job it’s going to have to do, with some curbs to spending, it is likely to feel like a “spending review-lite”. However it could also include some tax measures, like a new system to cap the profits from renewable energy regeneration, as well as a decision about benefit uprating.
Ultimately titles don’t matter in times of crisis – Liz Truss labelled her September statement a “mini budget”, yet this was the biggest set of spending announcements in one day every seen in modern times.
But Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Olney said the delay “risks leaving mortgage borrowers, pensioners and struggling families under a damaging cloud of uncertainty”.
She called on the PM to confirm benefits and pensions will be up-rated in line with inflation, and that there will be no cuts to public services, including the NHS.
“Sunak was installed by Conservative MPs into Number 10 without anyone voting for him, and without telling anyone about his plans for the country,” she said.
“The public deserve to know immediately what lies in store, and that they will not be made to pay for the Conservative Party trashing our economy.”
How did we get here?
Ms Truss came to power in September off the back of a summer of campaigning for lower taxes and higher growth.
A mini-budget by her chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng spooked the markets, leading to the pound plunging, mortgages being withdrawn, and the Bank of England being forced to intervene.
Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng announced huge plans based on government borrowing that sent the markets into a spin.
He was replaced by Mr Hunt and within three days had reversed nearly all of the policies.
Read more:
What was in the mini-budget and what has been scrapped?
Rishi Sunak appoints new cabinet – here’s who’s in and who’s out
Ms Truss resigned in the same week, and has now been replaced by Mr Sunak, who promised on the steps of Downing Street that “economic stability and confidence [would be] at the heart of this government’s agenda”.
There were hints the statement could be delayed on Wednesday when Foreign Secretary James Cleverly could not confirm the date to Sky News.
And later that morning, a Treasury source told our political editor Beth Rigby that it was “very possible”.
Sir Keir Starmer has joined other European leaders in Kyiv to press Russia to agree an unconditional 30-day ceasefire.
The prime minister is attending the summit alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
It is the first time the leaders of the four countries have travelled to Ukraine at the same time – arriving in the capital by train – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz travelling in the saloon car of a special train to Kyiv. Pic: Reuters
Leaders arrive in Kyiv by train. Pic: PA
It comes after Donald Trump called for “ideally” a 30-day ceasefire between Kyiv and Moscow, and warned that if any pause in the fighting is not respected “the US and its partners will impose further sanctions”.
Security and defence analyst Michael Clarke told Sky News presenter Samantha Washington the European leaders are “rowing in behind” the US president, who referred to his “European allies” for the first time in this context in a post on his Truth Social platform.
“So this meeting is all about heaping pressure on the Russians to go along with the American proposal,” he said.
“It’s the closest the Europeans and the US have been for about three months on this issue.”
Sir Keir Starmer, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Emmanuel Macron among world leaders in Kyiv. Pic: AP
Trump calls for ceasefire. Pic: Truth Social
Ukraine’s foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said Ukraine and its allies are ready for a “full, unconditional ceasefire” for at least 30 days starting on Monday.
Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement.
European leaders show solidarity – but await Trump’s backing
The hope is Russia’s unilateral ceasefire, such as it’s worth, can be extended for a month to give peace a chance.
But ahead of the meeting, Ukrainian sources told Sky News they are still waiting for President Donald Trump to put his full weight behind the idea.
The US leader has said a 30-day ceasefire would be ideal, but has shown no willingness yet for putting pressure on Russian president Vladimir Putin to agree.
The Russians say a ceasefire can only come after a peace deal can be reached.
European allies are still putting their hopes in a negotiated end to the war despite Moscow’s intransigence and President Trump’s apparent one-sided approach favouring Russia.
Ukrainians would prefer to be given enough economic and military support to secure victory.
But in over three years, despite its massive economic superiority to Russia and its access to more advanced military technology, Europe has not found the political will to give Kyiv the means to win.
Until they do, Vladimir Putin may decide it is still worth pursuing this war despite its massive cost in men and materiel on both sides.
“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.
“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”
Sir Keir and Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting in March. Pic: AP
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Putin’s Victory Day parade explained
The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.
But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.
“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.
“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”
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The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.
They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.
Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for a coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.
A special constable has been jailed after taking pictures on his phone from bodycam footage showing a dying man.
Former police volunteer William Heggs, 23, was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment at Leicester Crown Court on Friday after showing the photos of victim William Harty, 28, to a female colleague and storing them on his Snapchat account.
Mr Harty was found seriously injured in a residential street in Leicester on 25 October 2021 and Heggs had attended the scene, helping with CPR before paramedics arrived.
Mr Harty died in hospital a day later and the man responsible for his injuries, his brother-in-law Martin Casey, was subsequently convicted of his manslaughter.
Heggs showed the pictures he had taken of bodycam footage of Mr Harty’s body to a Leicestershire Police constable, who reported Heggs and said she did not like seeing blood.
His phone was seized and officers discovered other photographs and video clips of bodyworn footage of incidents Heggs had attended on duty, including of a knife seizure, use of baton and pepper spray, and a man with an injured hand receiving first aid.
He also took pictures of a police computer screen, showing details of crimes and suspects, without consent.
Heggs stored the materials in a Snapchat folder and disclosed graphic details – most of which were not in the public domain – about the injuries to a woman who was killed in a road traffic collision he had attended, to a friend on the social media platform.
Heggs was suspended from the force in November 2021 and resigned in October 2024 before pleading guilty to 11 computer misuse and data protection offences this March.
William Harty’s widow Mandy Casey. Pic: PA
‘He has traumatised me’
Mr Harty’s widow, Mandy Casey, said in a victim impact statement read to the court that Heggs “took (her) husband’s dignity when he was most vulnerable”.
“You don’t take someone’s dignity and pride from them on their deathbed.”
She continued: “When I found out special constable Heggs had done this, I just wanted to ask why. He has traumatised me. I feel I will never know if he showed them to others.”
Ms Casey said she was still scared that photos of her husband’s body might appear on social media.
She added that she had lost trust in the police.
Public trust in police ‘significantly undermined’
Judge Timothy Spencer told Heggs, who has autism and ADHD, that he was “probably too immature to be working as a police officer” as he handed down the sentence.
He said Heggs had received “extensive training”, including on the importance of data protection, and knew he should only share materials for “a genuine policing purpose”.
Heggs’s actions had “significantly undermined” public trust and confidence in police, according to the judge.
Read more from Sky News:
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Malcolm McHaffie, from the Crown Prosecution Service, added: “William Heggs abused the public’s trust in the office he held as a special police constable.
“He violated the dignity of the deceased victims for no apparent reason other than what could be considered personal fascination and to gain credibility among his peers.”
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