Labour set to exploit fiscal rules to increase borrowing by £9bn extra per year in effort to kickstart economy
Labour is set to exploit the UK's fiscal rules in order to increase borrowing by £9billion extra per year in an effort to kickstart the economy.
Although the UK Government borrowed £129billion in the financial year ending in March 2026, the new Chancellor John Healey is trying to relac the rules and increase that figure in a bid to create "growth in every postcode".
Upon entering No10, Andy Burnham announced he was eyeing up some "flexibility" in the fiscal rules while sources insist the Chancellor placed fiscal discipline as his "No1 priority".
The new mechanism could mean the Government could allow spending on "assets" to be offset against borrowing costs, allowing ministers to act without abiding by the rules.
Elliott Christensen, a senior economist at the Resolution Foundation think tank, said: "Rachel Reeves’s changes to the fiscal rules mean that the Government now has greater scope to address that challenge by making productive investments in the economy that in the long run will pay for themselves.
"The new Chancellor should start by boosting the scale of the National Wealth Fund [which] would mean an additional £9billion annual investment by 2031 in real terms."
"As a result we think that the bond markets will consider them as credible commercial market investment and not materially push up the cost of borrowing," he added.
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Lee Anderson slams critics of Reform’s small boats policy as he investigates Calais migrant crisis for himself
Lee Anderson has hit back at critics of Reform's plans to tackle the small boats crisis, telling opponents to “shut up” as he continued a fact-finding mission to migrant camps around northern France.
Speaking to GB News from Calais, the MP encouraged others to come and witness the scale of the migrant crisis first-hand.
Mr Anderson described visiting beaches used for crossings and sprawling camps housing around 2,500 people.
Earlier this week, Nigel Farage announced "Operation Fortress", a plan to deploy the Royal Navy to the English Channel to turn back small boats attempting to break into Britain.
Kemi Badenoch pledges to ditch 'woke' DEI officers across police forces all over the country
Kemi Badenoch has pledged to ditch "woke" diversity officer across police forces in England and Wales.
Along with using artificial intelligence, the move will free up 3,800 officers and 500,000 hours of police time, Tories said.
Mrs Badenoch told The Sun: "We have spoken to officers and developed a plan that will mean less time spent on paperwork and more spent on keeping people safe."
Ed Miliband prepares to meet Marco Rubio in just hours after touching down in Washington DC
Ed Miliband is preparing to meet US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington DC for the second time since becoming Foreign Secretary.
As simmering tensions between the former Energy Secretary and the US President bubble away, the pair will discuss the work to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and settle a "lasting" ceasefire.
Before the visit, Mr Miliband stressed Andy Burnham’s new team was "committed to nurturing our strong, enduring and essential alliance with the US".
Rupert Lowe's Restore Britain income tax plans set to cost £100billion
Restore Britain's plans to slash income tax could leave a £100billion hole in the nation's finances, economists have warned.
The party's leader, Rupert Lowe, unveiled the sweeping tax reduction package on Tuesday after a strong showing against both the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives at the Makerfield by-election.
The pledge aims to reverse years of stealth taxation pursued by successive Labour and Conservative Governments.
However, fiscal experts have cautioned the sums do not add up, with HM Revenue and Custom's (HMRC) own estimates suggesting the true cost could be roughly double what Restore Britain claims.
Fresh Labour donations row as Yvette Cooper rakes in staggering sum from private healthcare-linked mogul
Labour has been drawn into a fresh donations row after Yvette Cooper was revealed to have received hundreds of thousands of pounds from a private healthcare-linked donor.
The new Health Secretary received nearly half a million pounds from businessman Peter Hearn over the course of a decade, who held a significant stake in recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson, which headhunted for the NHS and private healthcare firms.
Odgers Berndtson has helped the NHS hire high-ranking executives across a number of senior roles - including former TalkTalk chief Baroness Harding, who led the controversial Test and Trace programme during the pandemic.
Between 2015 and 2024, Ms Cooper received £248,619 from the businessman directly, as well as £220,623 from two of his companies, MPM Connect and OPD Group, the British Medical Journal revealed.
Police vow to haul Andy Burnham to court to stop early release of PC Harper's killers
The Police Federation has vowed to take the Government to court in a bid to stop the early release of PC Andrew Harper's killers.
Aileen O’Connor, the chairwoman of the body, said releasing Jessie Cole and Albert Bowers onto the streets would anger and demoralise the morale of serving officers in the area.
PC Harper, 28, was killed in August 2019 as he responded to a quad bike theft in Sulhamstead, Berkshire.
Labour, under Mr Burnham, has exempted rapists and serious sexual abusers from the early release scheme - but not his killers.
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