The Prime Minister is set to hold a cabinet meeting later today following further backlash from the Budget.
This is a breaking news story (Image: EXPRESS)
Good Morning Britain‘s regular broadcast was interrupted on Tuesday’s instalment of the show as political correspondent Richard Gaisford stood outside No. 10 Downing Street to announce that Keir Starmer will hold a cabinet meeting today amid further fallout from Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ Budget.
It comes after the Labour leader’s unprecedented speech on Monday defending Reeves, and the resignation of Richard Hughes, who was the Budget watchdog chief. Gaisford told hosts Charlotte Hawkins, who was speaking to him live from the ITV studio: “They are the focus of many headlines still in the right-leaning press, really, about the decision to increase welfare spending by raising taxes.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer Visits A Nursery In London
Keir Starmer is holding a cabinet meeting later today (Image: Getty)
“And importantly, Charlotte, not actually revealing the full state of the nation’s finances in that press conference on November 4.”
He added: “The Christmas lights are now on here in Downing Street, but there’s not a lot of festive cheer though. It’s going to be an interesting, potentially tense cabinet meeting, as the Chancellor will be sitting around the table with senior government ministers who, it seems, have been talking to newspapers saying they feel she misled them and misled the country as well.”
The GMB star explained that Reeves has the “tough task” of having to find a new chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility after the boss resigned yesterday (Monday, December 1).
Keir and Reeves have denied claims that she misled voters by overstating the impact of a downgrade in the OBR’s productivity forecasts. Reeves, in part, blamed the £26 billion of tax rises in the Budget on the downgrade, which delivered a £16 billion hit to tax revenues.
Reeves also rejected a report in The Times from an unnamed minister who claimed the cabinet was “at no point” told about the “reality” of the OBR forecasts.
Reeves told BBC Wales the cabinet had been briefed on the Budget on the morning it was delivered, but said “you would never expect the Prime Minister and Chancellor to go through all the detailed numbers”.
The Conservatives are continuing to call for Reeves to resign over her handling of the economy.
