Labour ministers are “begging” Rachel Reeves to unleash more public funding to fulfil their manifesto commitments. The Chancellor is expected to announce tax rises in her upcoming Autumn Budget as the Government seeks to fill a £30 billion black hole.
MPs have warned that “austerity-lite” politics could drive voters towards Reform UK. They are reportedly “frustrated and impatient” with Reeves’ approach to borrowing while concern is also growing about the public reaction to further tax rises. It comes ahead of the annual Labour conference in Liverpool where Reform UK will likely dominate discussions while Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is expected to face a leadership challenge.
A minister told The Telegraph: “Everybody is begging for the fiscal rules to be slackened so we have a bit more we can do in our portfolios, and lots of ministers have made that case to the Treasury.”
They added: “After the reshuffle, there is a hope that they will see we can’t just do austerity-lite. They are going to have to start listening to us because there are just too many gaps that need to be filled.”
Reeves is being tipped to raise taxes again in her budget on November 26. According to financial think tank Institute for Government, it’s “almost certain” that taxes will rise this autumn thanks to “high level of government debt”.
It points to VAT, Income Tax and National Insurance as the best options for tax rises. Meanwhile, another think tank, The Resolution Foundation, put forward a suggestion for raising Income Tax while cutting National Insurance.
Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, has called for wealth taxes on expensive properties. While his suggestions are popular with some Labour MPs, Reeves is believed to be against the “mansion tax”.
She also told ministers that they must “keep spending under control” and “live within our means”.
She said: “I do not think there is anything progressive about spending £100bn a year on paying off debts accrued by previous governments when I would rather be spending more of that money on cutting hospital waiting lists, tackling illegal migration and keeping our country safe.”
A recent poll revealed that Starmer is the least popular Prime Minister of all time. Meanwhile, the Ipsos poll, which surveyed over 1,100 adults in the week to September 17, also shows that Reeves is the least popular Chancellor since records began.
The poll showed that 79% of people are dissatisfied with the current Prime Minister while only 13% are happy with his leadership – a satisfaction rating of -66. Reeves scored a net satisfaction of -56, while the net satisfaction with the Government is at -70.
