The Cabinet is united on the Government’s spending plans, Rachel Reeves has insisted amid reports of arguments over the upcoming Budget.
The Chancellor was reportedly locked in negotiations with some ministers until last week as she sought £40 billion of tax rises and spending cuts ahead of the announcement on October 30.
Speaking to the PA news agency, Ms Reeves said the final settlements had been confirmed but acknowledged it had been “right for all Cabinet members to want to get the best settlement for their departments”.
She added that settling departmental budgets was “an important achievement and shows the determination of this Government to get a grip of the public finances, and shows that we are as one, united in fixing the mess that the Conservatives left for us”.
Several ministers were reported to have written to the Prime Minister to express concern about the scale of cuts being demanded in some areas as the Chancellor attempts to find £40 billion with which to deliver Labour’s promises.
Such concerns are often raised as part of Budget negotiations between ministers and the Treasury but these come in the context of Labour’s promise that there will be no “return to austerity” and fears of further backlash similar to that seen after the winter fuel payment cut.
Ms Reeves insisted her Budget would be “honest” about the state of the public finances and what needed to be done to put them “on a firm footing” while doing “everything within our power” to protect living standards and the NHS.
The health service is one of the few departments expected to come out as a winner from the Budget process, with reports suggesting it will receive a significant real-terms increase in funding as the Government stakes its popularity on cutting waiting lists.
But Government sources said reports of an increase of between 3-4% were not accurate.
