Chancellor Rachel Reeves has admitted that Labour does not 'deserve' to win the next general election unless it delivers the change voters expect. Speaking at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, she acknowledged frustration over policy U-turns on winter fuel payments and welfare, but insisted the party inherited a 'mess' from the Conservatives.
Reeves said she understood impatience for change, but stressed the need to ensure public finances add up, which sometimes forces unpopular decisions. She defended the government's tax balance, rejecting renewed calls from Labour figures, including former shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds, for a wealth tax.
In Scotland, Labour has slipped to third place in opinion polls behind the SNP and Reform UK, despite winning a by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse in June. Reeves faced criticism over the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery and the ban on new North Sea drilling, which she said was accompanied by £200m investment in carbon capture technology in Aberdeenshire.
On Jeremy Corbyn's new unnamed party, Reeves predicted the public would reject it, noting that Corbyn had already lost two general elections. She dismissed the idea that it could become a 'Reform of the left', arguing that voters had given their verdict on his leadership in 2019.
