Reeves Sets Out £14 Billion Budget Recast to Fix UK Finances

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves announced a package of politically divisive cuts to welfare and government departments to fill a hole in the country’s finances after this year’s growth forecast was cut in half.

The Labour government was forced to turn to spending reductions halfway through the fiscal year as weak growth and rising borrowing costs had put Reeves on course to break a budget rule that she uses to reassure the markets. While the chancellor had ruled out further tax rises after £40 billion ($51.5 billion) of extra levies in October’s budget infuriated British businesses, she faced warnings from the ruling party’s leftwing that she was edging toward austerity.