In another setback for Rachel Reeves, UK Government borrowing soared above forecasts last month as public sector spending rose, putting pressure ahead of the spring statement next week.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said public sector net borrowing was £10.7 billion in February. This was £100 million more than the same month last year and the fourth-highest February on record.
The UK’s official economic growth forecast for the year is also reportedly set to halve in a blow for a Labour government that has pledged to prioritise growth.
The expected growth rate for the 2025 financial year, from April to March 2026, will be downgraded by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) next week, The Telegraph reported, reducing from 2 per cent to around 1 per cent.
In her spring statement next week, Rachel Reeves is expected to try blaming the drop on worsening global economics amid Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The chancellor is also set to announce the biggest cuts since the George Osborne era on Wednesday, forcing Labour to reject claims the government is returning to a policy of austerity, days after the party slashed the welfare bill by around £5 billion.
Is the UK facing a new age of austerity?
There are ever more signs that the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, will use her spring statement next week to introduce further public spending cuts, augmenting fears that the country could be on the verge of a new age of austerity. How has the growth agenda morphed so soon into something akin to its opposite?
Why might new cuts be needed?
The growth that was the theme of Reeve’s first Budget last autumn has failed to materialise, and economic forecasts have become ever more pessimistic. The Bank of England last month reduced its growth forecast for this financial year by half – from 1.5 per cent to 0.75 per cent, and predicted higher inflation. Worse, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research think tank, the combination of poor growth and rising interest rates has reduced the chancellor’s spending buffer – or fiscal headroom – from an estimated £10bn to zero. And while the effect of US trade tariffs could be less damaging to the UK than to EU and other countries, there could still be a cost.
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Is the UK facing a new age of austerity?
The planning system is broken. Here’s how we should fix it
‘Nothing off the table’ in placing UK troops on the ground for Kyiv
Downing Street on Friday said officials from allied countries will meet again at the same site next week to firm up a strategy to protect Kyiv as plans enter an “operational phase”.
Asked whether the focus of discussions had shifted away from the prospect of ground troops for Ukraine, a Number 10 spokesman said: “No, nothing is off the table on any of these fronts, so I wouldn’t start ruling anything out.
“But clearly thousands of troops will be required to support any deployment, whether that is at sea, on land or in the air.”
Any deployment will require significant support and the firming up of “basic logistics of … moving people and ensuring deployment rotations, so as the PM said we need to be prepared for all eventualities,” the official said.
“We’ve moved into an operational phase now and what that means is … bringing together military planners to look at the potential design of force structures, interoperability and what capability is needed to ensure a sovereign Ukraine is able to defend itself for generations to come.
“Next week, we’ll continue to accelerate the pace and scale of operational planning with further meetings at our Northwood headquarters as we look forward more closely at the details and structure of any future force.”
Lib Dems urge Starmer to seize frozen £25 billion Russian assets
The Liberal Democrats have called on Sir Keir Starmer to seize Russian assets after the Treasury said £25 billion worth has been frozen since the start of the Ukraine war.
A report released by the Treasury on Friday revealed the total, which accounts for all assets that have been sanctioned by the UK since February 2022 when the invasion of Ukraine began.
Some 2,001 individuals and entities have been sanctioned under the regime as of March 2024, according to the Treasury.
Liberal Democrat Leader Ed Davey said: “In the face of Donald Trump edging ever closer to an historic betrayal of Ukraine the Government cannot just sit on its hands and cower behind clunky legal processes.
“There is nothing stopping us, and those who say otherwise need to get out of the way.
“Emergency legislation needs to be tabled so that the Government can seize these billions and use them to support Ukraine. More Ukrainians are being killed everyday as Putin’s barbaric invasion continues. To stand idly by and not use these assets to support them in their struggle would be a shocking dereliction of duty.”
When is the Spring Statement – and what will be in it? From taxes to spending cuts
Rachel Reeves will soon give an update on her plans for the UK economy as she prepares to make the first Spring Statement of the new Labour government. The chancellor will also speak to an economic forecast as part of the event, with many predicting further spending cuts to come as the Treasury seeks to tackle ailing growth.
Ms Reeves will be delivering the statement on Wednesday 26 March. She had previously committed to one major economic event a year – the Budget – which usually comes in the Autumn. This is to “give families and businesses stability and certainty on tax and spending changes,” she says.
This means there a no major policy announcements expected as part of the statement, although some have predicted that reduced spending targets and some key tax changes will be revealed.
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Sir Keir’s ‘coalition of the willing’ is proving to be principled – and a rallying cry for Ukraine
Military leaders met behind closed doors in London for what was billed as operational planning for Sir Keir Starmer’s “coalition of the willing”. EU leaders, meanwhile, thrashed out preparations for closer defence cooperation and the eventuality, however distant, of peace in Ukraine; Volodymyr Zelensky reported from Norway on his recent “friendly” phone call with Donald Trump.
With much of the recent action happening between Washington and Moscow, and with diplomatic meetings taking place in Saudi Arabia, it has been all too possible to neglect the role that could and should be played by Europe and the Europeans. Here was an illustration of why they matter.
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Downing Street unable to confirm if Heathrow will be fully reopened on Saturday
Downing Street would not say whether it is confident Heathrow Airport will be fully reopened by Saturday.
Asked whether this would be the case, a No 10 spokesman said: “Well, it’s clearly a fast-moving situation.”
He added: “The fire is still burning and I’m aware that the airport has announced a complete closure until midnight tonight as a result of the situation.
“It will be for emergency services and Heathrow to update on timescales for when this situation will be resolved. We do expect there will be significant direct disruption in the hours and days ahead.”
There was a “cross-government call” on Friday morning to deal with the immediate aftermath of the fire, the spokesman said.
He added: “The Department for Transport is working closely with Heathrow Airport, Nats (National Air Traffic Services) and all key operators to understand the situation and ensure a quick resolution so that the airport can reopen and flights resume as quickly as possible, and clearly we will do everything we can to support those affected and get things moving again.”
Electrical substation fire makes Heathrow look ‘vulnerable’, says Energy Secretary
The closure of Heathrow due to a fire at an electrical substation has made the airport look “vulnerable”, the Energy Secretary has said.
Europe’s busiest airport, which is supplied by the North Hyde electrical substation in west London, was impacted by the power outage caused by a fire on Thursday night.
A spokesperson for the airport said they had no choice but to close Heathrow until 11.59pm on Friday, adding that they expect “significant” disruption over the coming days.
London Fire Brigade said 10 fire engines and around 70 firefighters were still on the scene at Nestles Avenue in Hayes just before 6am with part of a transformer still alight.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said that National Grid told him they had not seen “anything like the scale” of what happened with the “seriousness” of the fire.
“But it makes Heathrow look quite vulnerable and therefore we’ve got to learn lessons, as I say, about not just Heathrow but how we protect our major infrastructure,” he told ITV’s Good Morning Britain.
Mr Miliband said the fire “appears to have knocked out a back-up generator as well as the substation itself”.
Over 5,000 migrants cross English Channel since January
More than 5,000 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the English Channel since the start of the year, figures show.
Some 341 migrants were detected crossing the Channel on Thursday, according to provisional Home Office data.
It means 5,025 arrivals have been recorded since January 1.
This is the earliest point in the year at which the 5,000 mark has been passed since data on Channel crossings was first reported in 2018.
Last year, 5,000 arrivals was passed on March 31.
The cumulative number of arrivals so far in 2025, 5,025, is 24% higher than at this stage in 2024, when the figure stood at 4,043, and 36% higher than at this point in 2023 (3,683).
Miliband ‘very confident’ hundreds of thousands of green jobs will be created
Ed Miliband has said he is “very confident” the Government will create “hundreds of thousands” of jobs with its green plans, but did not put a figure on how close it is to Labour’s manifesto target of 650,000.
The Energy Secretary said net zero represents “the growth opportunity of the 21st century”, and that the sector grew at a faster rate than the economy as a whole last year.
It comes as Mr Miliband announced the first major project for the publicly-owned Great British Energy.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Friday morning, he was asked about 650,000 new jobs pledged in the manifesto.
He told the programme: “We’re confident we’re going to provide hundreds of thousands of jobs as a result of our drive to net zero.
“This is the growth opportunity of the 21st century. Turn your back on net zero and you turn your back on business investment, good jobs, innovation for the future, and Britain leading in the key industrial areas of the future.”
Pushed again on the figures, former Labour leader Mr Miliband said: “I’m very confident that we will create hundreds of thousands of jobs in the green economy.” He also said he is “confident” the Government will meet its pledges.
