The Spring Statement was meant to be a routine update on the public finances but Reeves made more extensive changes after her plans were blown off course by lower growth and higher government borrowing costs. Reeves used her statement to announce a further £2.2bn for defence, while a target has been set to reduce the administrative costs of government departments by 15% by 2030. Real household disposable income per person is expected to grow by an average of around 0.5% a year, the OBR said. Economist Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, told BBC Breakfast this was "actually a pretty feeble rate of growth". On social media, Labour MP Jon Trickett said: "I will not be voting for cuts to poorest people on welfare benefits.

Source: The Times March 27, 2025 07:15 UTC