Kate Andrews is deputy editor of The Spectator’s World edition.
14 min listen
Parliament is back today and Kwasi Kwarteng is facing questions from the opposition as well as from those within his party. How much pressure is he under? Also on the podcast, looking ahead to another fiscal event at the end of the month, are we heading for a series of departmental spending cuts? What would
When Kwasi Kwarteng stood up to deliver his mini-Budget last month, the assumption by the government was that the markets would jump for joy over its growth strategy. Less than three weeks later, the Bank of England is staging its third intervention to keep the UK’s bond market afloat, warning this morning of ‘material risk’
Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has written to the Treasury select committee this morning, announcing that the date of his medium-term fiscal plan is moving forward by almost a month: from 23 November to 31 October. Mel Stride, the committee’s chair, tweeted the letter in full, adding that he ‘strongly welcome[s]’ the move (which, he says, he
16 min listen
This week: Kate Andrews laments how Truss is hurting the free-market cause (00:51), Anthony Whitehead explains the ‘arrogance’ of the latest environmental activist movement the Tyre Extinguishers (06:42) and Michael Simmons reads his notes on barcodes (12:54). Produced and presented by Oscar Edmondson.
Liz Truss has bet the house on growth. The Prime Minister and Chancellor formally gave themselves the target of a 2.5 per cent growth rate in last month’s mini-Budget. But at the Conservative party conference this week, Truss used her speech to frame her premiership around growth, singling out as her enemies anyone she deems
In theory, I should be delighted about the Liz Truss project. She is saying the things I’ve been arguing for years: talking not just about lower taxes but about basic liberty and how it relates to everyday life. She’s passionate about these ideas – and sincere. I remember watching her deliver a rallying cry, a
When Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng entered Downing Street, laser focus was not only applied to them, but also to the free market think tanks they had worked with over the years. This evening, Kwarteng paid a visit to two of them, as the Institute of Economic Affairs and The Taxpayers’ Alliance hosted the Chancellor
Are we heading for a U-turn on the U-turn over the scrapping of the 45p tax rate? Liz Truss has said she would still like the top rate on high earners to come down, despite reversing on the policy just yesterday. Members of her cabinet agree she should bring it back: Suella Braverman has blasted Tory MPs for forcing
11 min listen
Kwasi Kwarteng has just spoken at the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham defending his mini-Budget, despite having u-turned on the cut to the 45p tax rate this morning. Will his speech have calmed his fellow Tories and, more importantly, the markets? Katy Balls speaks with James Forsyth, Kate Andrews and Isabel Hardman. Produced by Max
You could tell Kwasi Kwarteng was aware of his words and tone as he delivered his Conservative party conference speech to a hall full of Tory members this afternoon. It was a delicate set of circumstances, with him having had to U-turn on his plan to abolish the 45p tax rate only this morning. But
When the Liz Truss camp floated the idea of side-lining the Office for Budget Responsibility for her government’s first fiscal statement, the argument went that the announcements would be targeted at the energy crisis – and they couldn’t wait. As anticipation around the fiscal event grew, and it became clear that it would include much
39 min listen
The UK was the first country in the world to begin its formal vaccine rollout, starting with the 91 year old Margaret Keenan. In the years since, the pandemic has been almost entirely routed in this country (though its impact on the economy, on healthcare, on the criminal justice system, continue to be suffered). But
The fallout from last Friday’s mini-Budget has been bigger and more volatile than almost anyone expected, with sterling hitting an all-time low against the dollar; runaway gilt yields; a U-turn from the Bank of England on its plans to start quantitative tightening. And that was all by Wednesday lunchtime. Will things be looking up anytime
41 min listen
On this week’s podcast: For the cover of the magazine Kate Andrews assesses the politics of panic, and the fallout of last week’s so-called fiscal event. She is joined by Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies think tank to discuss where the Conservatives go from here (00:57). Also this week: Does the
What’s the sign of a successful Budget? Chris Philp, the new chief secretary to the Treasury, gave his answer moments after Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s statement last Friday: a strong pound. ‘Great to see sterling strengthening on the back of the new UK growth plan,’ he tweeted out. A (temporary) rising pound made sense to Truss
18 min listen
The Bank of England has today announced a major intervention into gilts to prevent a ‘material risk’ to financial stability as a result of government policy. How unprecedented is this move? Will Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng break their silence? Are we heading for another leadership election? Kate Andrews speaks with Fraser Nelson and James
Tonight the International Monetary Fund has weighed in on the UK’s mini-Budget, offering a direct rebuke of Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s tax cuts. ‘We are closely monitoring recent economic developments in the UK and are engaged with the authorities,’ its spokesperson said, in reference to the fluctuating pound and rising borrowing costs. ‘Given elevated
It has dawned on the government that last week’s mini-Budget might have been a bit too one-sided: £70 billion worth of extra borrowing and not a single mention of spending cuts or efficiency gains has seen borrowing costs spike (up by 0.3 per cent just today). As James Forsyth reports on Coffee House, this afternoon’s
The Chancellor’s first ‘fiscal event’ has revealed two major miscalculations – one by most of the political class and the other by the government. The political class broadly didn’t think Liz Truss’s government would actually push forward with its campaign pledges. It did. The government, for its part, appears to have badly underestimated the sceptical
19 min listen
Following Chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng’s ‘mini’ budget, the pound has fallen to a record low against the dollar, fueling speculation that the Bank of England will hike interest rates. How worrying are these figures? ‘I think the pound falling is a bit of a distraction from the real problem’ – James Forsyth Katy Balls speaks to Kate