Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has firmly rejected accusations that he and Chancellor Rachel Reeves misled the British public and the cabinet regarding the state of the nation's finances in the run-up to the budget.
Claims of Misleading Statements Dismissed
In an interview with Sky News' political editor Beth Rigby, the Prime Minister stated unequivocally that "there was no misleading". This comes after claims emerged that he and the Chancellor had deliberately painted an overly bleak picture of the public finances when the situation was not as dire.
Sir Keir explained that a critical productivity review conducted by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) was central to the government's assessment. The OBR, which provides independent fiscal forecasts, concluded that £16 billion less would be available than might have been previously anticipated, a figure the government was compelled to factor into its planning.
OBR Review Blamed on Conservative Legacy
The Prime Minister pointed out that a comprehensive productivity review of this kind had not been carried out for 15 years. He questioned why such an assessment was not completed at the end of the last Conservative government's term.
Sir Keir directly attributed the challenging fiscal starting point to the previous administration, noting that the OBR had downgraded its medium-term productivity growth forecast by 0.3 percentage points to 1% at the end of its five-year outlook.
A Challenging Starting Point for New Government
Outlining his government's ambitions, the Prime Minister said his goals were to more than double the fiscal headroom and to tackle the soaring cost of living, which he identified as the single most critical issue for families across the UK.
However, he emphasised the scale of the challenge, stating: "Starting that exercise with £16 billion less than we might otherwise have had. Of course, there are other figures in this, but there's no pretending that that's a good starting point for a government."
The government now faces the task of delivering a budget that addresses pressing economic concerns while managing the constraints identified in the OBR's significant review.
