UK chancellor Rachel Reeves has denied accusations that she misled the public about the state of the country’s finances in the lead up to the autumn budget.
Reeves has faced claims that she led the public to believe the country’s finances were in worse shape than they actually were.
That includes her speech from Downing Street on 4 November, in which Reeves laid the groundwork for tax rises, as the chancellor warned she would make “choices necessary to deliver strong foundations” for the UK economy.
Reports suggested ahead of the budget that the chancellor was expected to face a gap of as much as £20bn in the government budget. However, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) said in a letter, published on Friday, that in its forecast submitted to the chancellor on 31 October the government was set to meet its fiscal targets with £4.2bn headroom.
In its final…
