Chancellor Rachel Reeves will not be investigated by the Prime Minister's independent adviser on ministerial standards over her handling of the Budget. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage had called for Sir Laurie Magnus to probe whether Ms Reeves breached the ministerial code by talking down the public finances after receiving preliminary forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).
Sir Laurie is understood to have informed Mr Farage that there will not be an investigation. Mr Farage had argued that the Chancellor conducted a sustained campaign portraying the public finances as being in a state of collapse to prepare the ground for approximately £30 billion of tax increases, which he claimed were discretionary policy choices rather than unavoidable fiscal necessity.
He asserted that the British people now face a record tax burden based on a sustained misrepresentation of the true fiscal position. However, the ethics adviser has decided not to proceed with a formal inquiry.
