Rachel Reeves has insisted she will still be chancellor in two years’ time, pushing back against what she called “misogyny” in public life while urging Labour MPs to get behind her tax-raising budget reports The Times.
She made clear in the report that she would not allow her critics to “beat me”, warning that Labour must show voters it deserves a second term — something she said would only be possible if MPs remain united. Reeves also said leaks ahead of the budget had been “incredibly destabilising”.
Speaking to Labour colleagues in the Commons, she said: “I’ll show the media, I’ll show the Tories. I will not let them beat me. I’ll be there on Wednesday, I’ll be there next year and I’ll be back the year after that.”
Reeves also criticised “armchair” detractors who had questioned her suitability for the job. She added: “I don’t think even I had recognised the misogyny that still exists in public life.”
The chancellor acknowledged that some MPs would struggle with elements of a budget expected to include around £30 billion in tax rises, but urged them to consider the overall approach. She told them: “A budget involves choices. Choices are things that we do, and also things that we don’t do. I hope that you like every single measure but you might not. There might be 99 per cent or 95 per cent that you like, but 1 or 5 per cent that you don’t. The budget is a package. It’s not a pick and mix.”
She also signalled that additional support could be directed towards the NHS and measures to ease energy costs.
Treasury seeks backing from major lenders
Separately, it has emerged that the Treasury has asked banks to give public and visible backing to the budget. According to the Times people, familiar with the talks reported on officials wanting lenders to highlight how the plans could support first-time buyers and small businesses. The request comes as Reeves is expected to avoid raising the bank levy on profits.
Her appearance at the Parliamentary Labour Party meeting underlined how much is at stake politically. Both she and Sir Keir Starmer have faced growing pressure from ministers and backbenchers following Labour’s sharp slide in the polls.
Budget to feature range of tax measures
The budget will set out a “smorgasbord” of tax increases designed to plug a £30 billion gap and meet demands from Labour MPs for higher welfare spending. The measures are expected to include frozen income tax thresholds, changes to pension contribution rules, a charge on high-value homes and a pay-per-mile tax on electric vehicles. None of the changes would take effect before 2028.
Ministers are also preparing to announce a tax on milkshakes by ending the sugar tax exemption for pre-packaged dairy drinks, a move forecast to raise up to £100 million from 2027. Reeves is additionally expected to cut planned increases in public spending by as much as £5 billion for 2029-30 to help balance the books, though economists have questioned whether this is achievable.
She will describe the package as a “Labour budget” with “Labour values”, confirming commitments to scrap the two-child benefit cap, increase benefits in line with inflation and raise the national living wage.
Warnings from business leaders
Business groups urged Reeves not to let political considerations overshadow growth. Rain Newton-Smith, head of the Confederation of British Industry, said the UK was at a “fork in the road” and many companies feared the government was heading in the wrong direction.
She warned: “If we get the wrong choices on Wednesday then we risk getting locked in a stop-start economy where large tax rises rear their head every year, or even every autumn and spring. That is not the road to growth. That is a … road to certain decline.”
Newton-Smith also pressed Reeves to curb welfare spending and avoid a “thousand taxes”. She added: “Short-term politics leads to a long-term decline and this country cannot afford another decade of stagnation.”
