Connect with us

Published

on

Labour has pledged legislation requiring future governments to get an independent impact assessment of any significant tax and spending commitments they wish to make.

Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have vowed to strengthen the role of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) as part of the party’s plan to “bring growth and stability back to Britain’s economy”.

The intervention comes ahead of the anniversary of Liz Truss‘s calamitous mini-budget, which lacked an official forecast from the OBR, spooking the markets and triggering a huge economic fallout.

Labour said families and businesses are “still paying the price” for her “crashing the economy” – with households coming off fixed rate mortgages paying an average of £220 more a month and inflation forecast to be the highest in the G7.

They have billed their proposal as a “fiscal lock” which would ensure fiscal stability by:

  • Amending the legal framework governing the OBR to guarantee that where a fiscal event makes permanent tax and spending changes over a certain threshold, the fiscal watchdog can independently publish a forecast of the impact
  • Setting out the threshold in a revised charter of budget responsibility, that would be voted on in Parliament
  • Ensuring that in the event of an emergency where changes must be introduced at speed and a forecast cannot be produced in time, the OBR would be allowed to set a date for when it can publish its forecast
  • Setting out a fixed timetable for budgets that would say major fiscal decisions are announced by the end of November each year, allowing businesses and families four months to prepare for the new tax year and avoiding major changes to policy at the last minute
  • Annual autumn budgets would be followed by a spring update in early March providing an updated forecast and minor policy changes

Speaking ahead of a visit with the Labour leader to the London Stock Exchange on Friday, the shadow chancellor said: “The economic damage done by the Conservatives’ mini-budget was nothing short of disastrous and Britain is still paying the price, with higher mortgages, higher energy bills and higher prices in the shops.

“As chancellor, my mission will be to bring stability back to our economy because that is the only way we can bring growth back. Never again can a prime minister or chancellor be allowed to repeat the disastrous mistakes of last year’s mini-budget.

More on Labour

“Labour will introduce a new fiscal lock to strengthen the UK’s financial stability to prevent the turmoil we witnessed this time last year. Labour will ensure stability returns to our economy and on that rock of stability working people will be better off.”

Labour has been seeking to pitch itself as fiscally prudent, prioritising stabilising the economy over big spending commitments in a move that has angered some unions and those on the left.

They have sought to weaponise the anniversary of the Truss mini-budget to hammer home their message of fiscal responsibility, while highlighting the government’s record on the economy.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Truss ‘tried to fatten and slaughter the pig’

Ms Truss’ £45bn package of unfunded tax cuts, which she admitted would primarily have benefited the wealthy, sent the pound tumbling, interest rates soaring and culminated with the Bank of England having to intervene to prevent pension markets from collapsing.

Although she rowed back on her measures and sacked her chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, it was not enough to save her administration from collapsing and she resigned after just 49 days in the job – making her the shortest serving prime minister in British history.

She is still facing criticism over her actions, with the former Bank of England governor Mark Carney this week accusing her of turning Britain into “Argentina on the Channel” instead of “Singapore on the Thames”.

But Ms Truss has remained unrepentant, blaming “institutional bureaucracy” for her downfall.

Continue Reading

Politics

Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner over Birmingham bin strike

Published

on

By

Unite votes to suspend Angela Rayner over Birmingham bin strike

Labour’s largest union donor, Unite, has voted to suspend Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner over her role in the Birmingham bin strike row.

Members of the trade union, one of the UK’s largest, also “overwhelmingly” voted to “re-examine its relationship” with Labour over the issue.

They said Ms Rayner, who is also housing, communities and local government secretary, Birmingham Council’s leader, John Cotton, and other Labour councillors had been suspended for “bringing the union into disrepute”.

There was confusion over Ms Rayner’s membership of Unite, with her office having said she was no longer a member and resigned months ago and therefore could not be suspended.

But Unite said she was registered as a member. Parliament’s latest register of interests had her down as a member in May.

Politics latest: Italy and other EU countries have ‘huge doubts’ about legality of UK migrant deal

The union said an emergency motion was put to members at its policy conference in Brighton on Friday.

More on Angela Rayner

Unite is one of the Labour Party’s largest union donors, donating £414,610 in the first quarter of 2025 – the highest amount in that period by a union, company or individual.

The union condemned Birmingham’s Labour council and the government for “attacking the bin workers”.

Mountains of rubbish have been piling up in the city since January after workers first went on strike over changes to their pay, with all-out strike action starting in March. An agreement has still not been made.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Rat catcher tackling Birmingham’s bins problem

Ms Rayner and the councillors had their membership suspended for “effectively firing and rehiring the workers, who are striking over pay cuts of up to £8,000”, the union added.

‘Missing in action’

General secretary Sharon Graham told Sky News on Saturday morning: “Angela Rayner, who has the power to solve this dispute, has been missing in action, has not been involved, is refusing to come to the table.”

She had earlier said: “Unite is crystal clear, it will call out bad employers regardless of the colour of their rosette.

“Angela Rayner has had every opportunity to intervene and resolve this dispute but has instead backed a rogue council that has peddled lies and smeared its workers fighting huge pay cuts.

“The disgraceful actions of the government and a so-called Labour council, is essentially fire and rehire and makes a joke of the Employment Relations Act promises.

“People up and down the country are asking whose side is the Labour government on and coming up with the answer not workers.”

SN pics from 10/04/25 Tyseley Lane, Tyseley, Birmingham showing some rubbish piling up because of bin strikes
Image:
Piles of rubbish built up around Birmingham because of the strike over pay

Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman said the government’s “priority is and always has been the residents of Birmingham”.

He said the decision by Unite workers to go on strike had “caused disruption” to the city.

“We’ve worked to clean up streets and remain in close contact with the council […] as we support its recovery,” he added.

A total of 800 Unite delegates voted on the motion.

Continue Reading

Politics

Binance’s CZ threatens to sue Bloomberg over Trump stablecoin report

Published

on

By

Binance’s CZ threatens to sue Bloomberg over Trump stablecoin report

Binance’s CZ threatens to sue Bloomberg over Trump stablecoin report

Binance co-founder CZ has dismissed a Bloomberg report linking him to the Trump-backed USD1 stablecoin, threatening legal action over alleged defamation.

Continue Reading

Politics

BlockFi bankruptcy administrator and DOJ agree to dismiss $35M lawsuit

Published

on

By

BlockFi bankruptcy administrator and DOJ agree to dismiss M lawsuit

BlockFi bankruptcy administrator and DOJ agree to dismiss M lawsuit

BlockFi’s bankruptcy administrator and the DOJ have settled a $35 million crypto asset transfer lawsuit.

Continue Reading

Trending