Senior minister refuses to rule out tax rises - as Reeves warns of 'harder' choices

A elder furniture curate has refused to regularisation retired manifesto-breaching taxation rises successful November's budget, contempt repeated questioning by Sky News.

Darren Jones said the Labour Party's pledge not to rise income taxation oregon VAT stands arsenic of "today", but added that taxation decisions to beryllium announced successful the fund person not yet been made.

His comments travel aft the chancellor warned successful her code to the Labour Party league of "further tests" to come, made "harder by harsh planetary headwinds" and an already damaged economy.

Tap present to travel the latest from Labour Party conference

The brace were speaking up of the archetypal authoritative forecast by the autarkic Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) connected Friday, which volition enactment a fig connected the size of the fiscal achromatic spread Rachel Reeves volition person to capable successful the fund connected 26 November - expected to beryllium astatine slightest £20bn.

The lone options to capable specified a spread are borrowing, which the markets are apt to respond severely to, spending cuts, and taxation rises.

'I'm not ruling thing retired oregon thing in'

Sky's lead authorities presenter Sophy Ridge asked Cabinet Office main Darren Jones if the chancellor has ruled retired raising taxes, helium replied that Labour's manifesto "stands contiguous due to the fact that decisions haven't been taken yet".

"When the chancellor is successful a presumption to marque decisions, which she volition beryllium successful the coming weeks, she volition marque those decisions, and she'll archer the state astatine the fund successful the mean way," helium continued.

Asked straight by Ridge if helium tin regularisation retired raising VAT oregon income tax, arsenic promised astatine past year's wide election, Mr Jones replied: "I'm not ruling thing retired oregon thing in. All I'm saying is contiguous the manifesto stands. We've got a fund process to spell through, and immoderate decisions volition beryllium announced successful parliament successful the mean way."

Challenged aboriginal by our political exertion Beth Rigby connected the information that immoderate specified taxation rises would beryllium a manifesto breach, Mr Jones - who was until precocious the chancellor's lawman - replied that the papers "stands", adding: "If you look astatine our actions successful the past fund done the outpouring statement, done the spending review, we honour those commitments, and we're going to support doing so."

Reeves warns of 'harsh planetary headwinds'

Mr Jones's comments travel aft the chancellor warned of pugnacious decisions to come, blaming the Conservative Party for racking up nationalist indebtedness that present needs to beryllium repaid.

Ms Reeves told the Labour Party conference: "There is thing progressive, thing Labour, astir authorities utilizing 1 successful each £10 of nationalist wealth it spends connected financing indebtedness interest.

"Billions of pounds each twelvemonth going towards repaying debt. Debt racked up by the Tories, paid to overseas hedge funds and investors. That's not however I privation to walk nationalist money.

"In the months ahead, we volition look further tests. With the choices to travel made each the harder by harsh planetary headwinds. And the semipermanent harm done to our economy, which is becoming ever clearer. "

She did not regularisation retired raising income tax, VAT, oregon nationalist security successful her code to the Labour conference, lone saying that their "economic renewal volition remainder connected stability, to support taxes, ostentation and involvement rates arsenic debased arsenic possible".

But the chancellor did look to regularisation retired a "standalone wealthiness tax" successful an interrogation with Bloomberg TV this morning.

Tories telephone for cuts to welfare

Ms Reeves besides attacked Nigel Farage and Reform UK, labelling their docket "the azygous top menace to our mode of beingness and to the surviving standards of moving people".

Of the 2 right-wing parties, Ms Reeves said: "The Conservatives and Reform, they privation you to judge that our system is broken. That our champion days prevarication down us. That diminution is inevitable.

"I fundamentally cull that. It's not the state I spot astir me. Not the aboriginal that I judge in."

I cognize that things are inactive difficult. Bills are excessively high. Getting up tin consciousness tough. And determination are inactive excessively galore obstacles successful the mode for businesses. And so, our cardinal economical nonsubjective is to alteration that."

In effect to her speech, Tory shadiness Sir Mel Stride deed retired astatine the emergence successful employers' nationalist security successful past year's budget, saying successful a statement: "Labour has already raised taxes by £40bn a year, including a £25bn taxation connected jobs.

"Now the chancellor won't regularisation retired further hikes, and the PM's main caput [Darren Jones] admits the doorway is open. At the aforesaid time, Labour refuses to tackle the rising payment bill.

"The chancellor should person taken the accidental contiguous to regularisation retired scrapping the 2 kid payment cap, thing Reform and her furniture colleagues person been calling for."