Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachel Reeves and Ruth Cadbury

Tuesday 3rd September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Ruth Cadbury (Brentford and Isleworth) (Lab)]

T9. The letter from the Cabinet Secretary to the former Chancellor that emerged this morning clearly stated that the failure by the last Government to hold a spending review following the unexpected national and global pressures significantly contributed to the fiscal challenge that the Labour Government inherited. What can the Chancellor learn from this?

[Rachel Reeves]

The Conservative party crashed the economy and then wrecked the public finances, leaving us with a £22 billion black hole. The shadow Chancellor is not willing to be straight about the damage he did, and is now trying to pass the buck to independent civil servants. I will always be honest about the public finances and take the tough decisions that we need to fix the foundations of our economy.