- Chancellor Rachel Reeves is set to announce Labour's spending plans on Wednesday, but analysis suggests she will need to make £5bn in cuts by 2028/29.
- The cuts are expected across unprotected departments like housing, policing, and local government, excluding NHS England, core schools budget, and defence, with Labour critics dubbing the plans “austerity 2.0”.
- The Home Office is expected to bear the brunt of spending cuts, potentially impacting police numbers despite pledges to cut crime.
- The analysis, commissioned by the Lib Dems, assumes Reeves will not hike taxes and was made before committing £1.25bn to restore winter fuel payments to pensioners.
- Lib Dems criticised the expected cuts, urging the Labour government to boost growth and avoid spending shortfalls, suggesting a UK-EU Customs Union to boost the economy.
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