Labour confronts £20bn black hole
Plus, the FT’s Gill Plimmer on the HS2 debacle
An episode of the Political Fix podcast, hosted by Financial Times, titled "Labour confronts £20bn black hole" was published on July 26, 2024 and runs 34 minutes.
July 26, 2024 ·34m · Political Fix
Summary
The chancellor Rachel Reeves is about to confront the British public with the size of the black hole in the country’s finances. A funding shortfall of about £20bn is likely to lead to tax rises at the Budget later this year. So — how to fix the problem? The FT’s political editor George Parker sits down with colleagues Stephen Bush and Robert Shrimsley to consider the government’s options. Plus, the FT’s infrastructure correspondent Gill Plimmer outlines the scale of the debacle that is the cancellation of the high-speed rail link between Birmingham and Manchester. Want more? Free links:Rachel Reeves to pave way for UK Budget tax rises in ‘spending audit’Expect a Tory leadership race mired in bitter and personal fightsThames Water’s credit rating slashed to ‘junk’Britons may need to be put off taking trains due to HS2 curtailment, watchdog says Follow George on X @GeorgeWParker, Stephen @stephenkb. Robert @robertshrimsley, Gill @gillplimmer1Sign up for 30 free days of Stephen Bush's Inside Politics newsletter, winner of the World Association of News Publishers 2023 ‘Best Newsletter’ award: https://ft.com/insidepoliticsofferPresented by George Parker. Produced by Audrey Tinline.The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Audio mix and original music by Breen Turner. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episode Description
The chancellor Rachel Reeves is about to confront the British public with the size of the black hole in the country’s finances. A funding shortfall of about £20bn is likely to lead to tax rises at the Budget later this year. So — how to fix the problem? The FT’s political editor George Parker sits down with colleagues Stephen Bush and Robert Shrimsley to consider the government’s options. Plus, the FT’s infrastructure correspondent Gill Plimmer outlines the scale of the debacle that is the cancellation of the high-speed rail link between Birmingham and Manchester.
Want more? Free links:
Rachel Reeves to pave way for UK Budget tax rises in ‘spending audit’
Expect a Tory leadership race mired in bitter and personal fights
Thames Water’s credit rating slashed to ‘junk’
Britons may need to be put off taking trains due to HS2 curtailment, watchdog says
Follow George on X @GeorgeWParker, Stephen @stephenkb. Robert @robertshrimsley, Gill @gillplimmer1
Sign up for 30 free days of Stephen Bush's Inside Politics newsletter, winner of the World Association of News Publishers 2023 ‘Best Newsletter’ award:
https://ft.com/insidepoliticsoffer
Presented by George Parker. Produced by Audrey Tinline.
The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. Audio mix and original music by Breen Turner. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.
Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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