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The UK government’s debt relief plan will be unveiled on October 31, more than three weeks earlier than the original deadline, Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarten said on Monday.
and letter Speaking to Congressional Finance Committee Chairman Mel Stride, Kwarteng said he had decided to move the date forward from November 23 to October 31.
Economic and fiscal forecasts from the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) will be released on the same day as the government’s medium-term financial plan.
Following confusion last week over whether the prime minister was planning to bring forward the date after the government was criticized for not releasing an OBR forecast along with a mini-budget last month.
In a letter to Stride, Kwarteng defended not publishing the “preliminary analysis” by OBR he received when he became prime minister because “since then he has made important policy announcements, including growth plans.” did.
He said the new date would give the government time to finalize its medium-term financial plan.
He also said the timeframe will allow OBR to obtain data releases, go through a “full forecasting process” and provide a “detailed assessment of the economy and finances.”
Stride, who previously pressured the prime minister to release the OBR forecast, said it was “strongly welcome”.[s]The decision to speed up the announcement could mean that the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee could set a “smaller rise” in interest rates at its November 3 meeting “if this fits the market well”. added.
Government Confidence
Downing Street said it would provide details of its growth plan ahead of the announcement of its financial plan.
An official spokesperson for Prime Minister Liz Truss told reporters on Monday, “Clearly you will notice that we have moved the date of the medium-term financial plan forward to October 31.”
“We’re looking at other growth choreography [measures,] Therefore, we will try to update it as soon as possible. But yes, for more information on these growth plans, [Oct.] 31.”
A spokesperson said the government was “confident” that it would be able to “provide OBR with a sufficient level of detail” before finalizing the forecast.
Asked why Kwarteng brought forward the medium-term fiscal plan, the official said, “As the Prime Minister said in a letter to the Finance Ministry’s Special Committee, it is important to quickly provide a complete economic and fiscal outlook. I knew it and wanted it,” he said.Setting his commitment to reduce debt in the medium term and setting out a detailed plan as soon as possible and we believe in that [Oct.] 31 is the right time to do it. ”
Liberal Democrat Treasury Department spokesperson Sarah Olney called the decision “another screeching U-turn from a government that has lost control of the economy.”
She asked Kwarten to “explain what he would do to deal with the soaring mortgage costs caused by the budget failure,” adding that “there is no clear plan to protect homeowners.” Otherwise, this risks becoming Kwasi Kwarten’s Halloween horror show.”
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Lily Zhou is an Ireland-based reporter focusing on UK news. Lily said she attended the Chinese edition of The Epoch Times for the first time before she focused on the UK in 2020.
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