Rachel Reeves has said she is “sick of people mansplaining how to be chancellor” to her, days before she unveils her make-or-break Budget.
Hitting back at critics amid growing concern over sweeping tax rises that are expected next week, the chancellor said she is “not going to let them bring me down by undermining my character or my confidence”.
Ms Reeves also admitted the government has “made a couple of unforced errors” but insisted it is “fighting to win”.
But the chancellor failed to give any detail on what she will unveil in the Budget or how she will improve Britain’s ailing public finances, nor did she address the leaks and briefings that have dominated the media landscape in the lead-up to next week’s fiscal event.
It comes as the chancellor scrambles to fill a £20bn black hole in the public finances after weeks of speculation about her tax rise plans and growing criticism of the Treasury for what the Commons speaker dubbed a “hokey-cokey Budget”, after the department briefed out plans to raise income tax and then appeared to row back on it.
The chancellor is now widely expected to look at other ways to raise cash to tackle the shortfall and ensure she remains on track to meet her fiscal rules.
“There are lots of people who say cut taxes and the economy will grow, but what spending would they cut? Borrowing is too high, but you can’t cut it overnight”, Ms Reeves said.
“Public services are a mess, but we haven’t got loads of money to throw at them and we have to use what we’ve got well.
“We can’t just carry on like this and muddle through. We have to make some decisions to get on a different path.”
The Times interview with Ms Reeves also saw her address the day when she was seen crying during PMQs amid growing speculation over her future in the Treasury – an incident that was blamed on a “personal issue” at the time.
“If you weren’t recording this, I’d tell you about what was going on, but I’m not saying that to the world,” she said.
“Most people have had a day at work when they go into the toilets and have a cry, or say to their boss, ‘I’m just going home early.’
“Unfortunately, my difficult moment was on live television. I always go to Prime Minister’s Questions – I thought it was my duty to be there – but if I had that day again, I wouldn’t have gone into the chamber.”
Asked about her critics, the chancellor said: “I’m sick of people mansplaining how to be chancellor to me.”
But as Britain’s first female chancellor, she also acknowledged still feeling the need to prove herself to the “boys who now write newspaper columns”.
Asked whether that spurs her on, she said: “Yeah, a bit. I recognise that I’ve got a target on me. You can see that in the media; they’re going for me all the time. It’s exhausting.
“But I’m not going to let them bring me down by undermining my character or my confidence. I’ve seen off a lot of those boys before – and I’ll continue to do so.”
In another blow to the chancellor, with just days to go before she unveils the Budget, the latest official figures showed higher-than-expected government borrowing last month.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said public sector borrowing stood at £17.4bn last month, £1.8bn lower than a year ago but the third-highest level for October since records began.
The figure was more than the £15bn expected by most economists and higher than the £14.4bn forecast in March by the UK’s independent fiscal watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
