Has Rachel Reeves broken her fiscal rules?

Rachel Reeves is having to borrow more money than even the worst estimates expected. Figures on the public finances, published this morning by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), show that in the financial year to January we borrowed over £118 billion. This is £11.6 billion more than at the same point in the last financial year and is the fourth highest borrowing period since comparable records began in 1993. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) had expected borrowing to be some £13 billion lower by this point in the year.

This news puts even more pressure on the Chancellor who, reports now suggest, has blown her fiscal headroom and failed to stick to her fiscal rules. She faces the choice of taking Britain’s tax burden even higher than the post-war high it will reach according to current plans, having to slash public spending – or most likely both.