Davos: Jeremy Hunt signals tax-cutting budget ahead to help drive growth
The chancellor says he wants to cut taxes at the spring budget this year, declaring that doing so will be the quickest route to getting the economy growing again.
Talking to Sky News on the fringes of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Jeremy Hunt said that while he has yet to see the fiscal numbers ahead of the March event, he is hopeful of reducing taxes.
“I look around the world and I see that the parts of the world like the United States, like Asia, that are growing the fastest, have the most dynamic economies, tend to be places with lower taxes,” he said.
“And that was why in the autumn statement, we decisively cut taxes.
“So my priority in the budget will be growth – because if I can grow the economy, that will mean that then we have more money for the NHS, we can relieve the pressure on families, we can invest in our brilliant armed forces.”
The chancellor arrived at the summit in Davos later than nearly all other major political figures, because he wanted to stay in London to vote on the Rwanda bill in parliament on Wednesday night. He said that by the time the vote was over the only way to get to Davos in time for his meetings on Thursday was to charter a private jet.
Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said his absence earlier this week had been noted.
Ms Reeves is in Davos to woo the great and the good of the global economy. File pic
“You see leaders from other countries around the world are here and without that leadership from the government, we’re missing out on investment, we’re missing out on jobs and prosperity,” she said.
“And I am determined that if I am chancellor this time next year, I will leave no stone unturned in bringing jobs, prosperity and investment to Britain.”
One of the main issues overshadowing the event this year has been the near shutdown of the Red Sea as a shipping lane.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Shipping crisis felt in Davos
Mr Hunt said that despite the worries that this feeds another jump in inflation, the UK and US airstrikes on Houthi sites were essential.
“It is so important that the UK takes decisive action with our American allies to make sure that the Red Sea route is secured,” he said.
“It is a very major global trade route and Britain is playing a very important role in the world in securing those trade routes because of the action that we’ve taken.”
Politics
Migrants to be deported to France ‘within weeks’ – as Farage vows to scrap human rights law
Nigel Farage has said he would scrap the UK’s human rights law to enable the mass deportation of illegal migrants, as the government reportedly prepares to send more than 100 small boat arrivals back to France.
Writing in The Daily Telegraph ahead of a speech later today, the Reform leader said the Human Rights Act would be ripped up should he become prime minister.
Politics Hub: Follow live updates
He would also take the country out of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and other international treaties, describing them as “malign influences” which had been “allowed to frustrate deportations”.
Pulling Britain out of the ECHR would make it one of only three European countries not signed up – the others being Russia and Belarus.
The UK’s Human Rights Act, Reform say, would be replaced by a British Bill of Rights. This would only apply to British citizens and those with a legal right to live in the UK.
Small boat arrivals would have no right to claim asylum. They would be housed at old military bases before being deported to their country of origin, or third countries like Rwanda.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Will Starmer’s migration tough talk deliver?
One in, one out
Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, is said to be ready to implement one of his major policies to tackle the small boats crisis within weeks.
According to The Times, the one in, one out migrant deal he signed with France’s Emmanuel Macron earlier this summer will soon see more than 100 people sent back.
The newspaper reported there are dozens of migrants currently in detention, including some arrested over the bank holiday weekend, who could be among the first sent back to France.
In exchange, the UK would be expected to take an equal number of asylum seekers in France with ties to Britain.
Read more: How will the one in, one out deal work?
Sir Keir Starmer hopes his deal with Emmanuel Macron will help. Pic: Reuters
A record 28,288 people have crossed the Channel in small boats this year. The total is 46% higher than at the same stage last year.
More boats were seen crossing on Monday, though the figures won’t be published by the Home Office until later.
Sir Keir is under mounting pressure within his own party to grip the issue, with Sir Tony Blair’s former home secretary Lord Blunkett warning the public “will turn on” him.
But they may already have – a YouGov poll over the weekend found 71% of people think the prime minister is dealing with the small boats crisis badly.
Protests have taken place outside hotels used to house asylum seekers over the weekend, and the government is braced for more legal challenges from councils over their use.
Labour have taken a battering in the opinion polls throughout 2025, with Reform consistently in the lead.
REX Financial CEO Greg King said the crypto market gets dicey “below the top 10” and ETF issuers should carefully choose what tokens to turn into funds.
ESMA, IOSCO and the World Federation of Exchanges urge the SEC to tighten oversight of tokenized equities, warning of investor risks as Wall Street giants eye the growing market.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment11 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024