Politics
Opposition and think-tank reactions to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement
The Chancellor Rachel Reeves has delivered her Spring Statement. Here are a selection of responses from the Opposition and Think Tanks
Britain’s unemployment rate is forecast to climb to its highest level since the pandemic, according to the OBR, the budget watchdog, with their growth forecast cut for the coming year to just 1.1 per cent.
Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride attacked Reeves over her Spring Statement, warning that there is “no growth strategy at all”.
“Is that it? … What utter complacency. A Chancellor in denial. She speaks of stability. What planet is the Right Honourable lady on?… The Chancellor has the temerity to suggest that she is creating the conditions for renewed growth. She is rather like the dodgy estate agent standing in the crumbling building with the roof one, the windows gone, with the floor gone, and saying ‘just think of the potential’. But that potential has been undermined by the terrible state of our public finances.”
Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith says:
“More gaslighting than Victorian London! The Chancellor is living in a fantasy world where unemployment isn’t rising and growth isn’t being downgraded.”
Joanna Marchong, head of communications and external affairs of the Adam Smith Institute, said:
“The Chancellor has convinced herself of economic stability based on deeply outdated forecasts. It is a Statement written by spin doctors, not economists. After last year’s Autumn Budget, Reeves needed to show that those sacrifices were not in vain and deliver growth. OBR forecasts, even though they don’t reflect current shocks, appear to show her rules are just about intact, but growth is lacklustre and the UK is far from credible. Markets are wobbling, and while the Spring Statement coincides with the unpredictable nature of war in the Middle East, this makes it even more vital that Reeves reforms the very anti-growth, anti-business measures she has introduced.”
Iain Mansfield, Director of Research at Policy Exchange, writes:
“Nothing in the Spring Statement alters the fact that Britain’s economy is in no state to weather another crisis. With growth downgraded, debt at around 95% of GDP and almost a million young people not in work or education, a prolonged spike in energy costs could push Britain to the brink. In a series of papers, Policy Exchange has set out practical measures to cut welfare, reform public sector pensions and eliminate wasteful spending across public services. Rather than continuing to grow the numbers – and wages – of those in the public sector, the Chancellor must end the self-inflicted wounds that are holding back the British economy: repealing the new Employment Rights Act, restarting drilling in the North Sea to reduce our dependence on imported oil and gas, and reversing the job-killing increase to Employer’s National Insurance.”
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, says:
“The idea that the chancellor has restored economic stability will sound like a sick joke to taxpayers suffering under this government. Try talking about pathetic growth to the publicans, mechanics, hairdressers and entrepreneurs who keep this country going. To the families struggling to put meals on the table for their children because their pay packets are so meagre, thanks to politicians and bureaucrats handing out their cash to people who refuse to work and many who have no right to be here. And for what? Everyone with a pair of eyes can see the services and infrastructure they pay for are crumbling before their eyes, and yet the chancellor has the cheek to tell them it’s all going marvellously. Enough’s enough – this country needs politicians who will put families and businesses first, and that means cutting spending and handing it back to taxpayers through big tax cuts.”
Howard Cox, Founder of FairFuelUK, writes:
“This was a missed economic growth opportunity for the Chancellor amid a new damaging oil crisis. With refineries, oil tankers, and the Straits of Hormuz being targeted, oil prices will continue to climb relentlessly. A barrel of crude is, at the time of writing, already over $84 (13:00 March 3rd). This will add 5-10p per litre in the next week or so. A sustained rise in Brent to $100 could add 10-20p per litre to petrol and diesel within weeks, based on historical patterns—similar to the surges seen in 2022 when oil hit $120 amid the Ukraine invasion. For over two decades, our clueless politicians have not planned to be self-sufficient in oil and gas production. They should be held to account for making the UK reliant on imports. FairFuelUK continues to call on Rachel Reeves to cut Fuel Duty, but at the very least keep it frozen for the lifetime of this parliament.”
Alan Mendoza, Executive Director of the Henry Jackson Society, says:
“The publication of the OBR’s latest forecasts alongside the Spring Statement makes the challenge unmistakable. Growth is weaker than expected, borrowing remains high and debt stays elevated. The OBR also warns of significant downside risks from global shocks – including conflict and energy volatility. In other words, geopolitical instability is now a direct fiscal risk to the UK. Yet there was no meaningful step change in defence readiness, no serious acceleration in rebuilding stockpiles and no clear plan to strengthen Britain’s defence industrial base. When growth is fragile and debt is high, strategic prioritisation becomes more important – not less. Investment in deterrence, supply chain resilience and sovereign capability is not discretionary spending; it is economic risk management.”