Watch live: Rachel Reeves gives speech on economic growth
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Embattled Rachel Reeves is making a major speech this morning in a desperate bid to kickstart the economy.
The Chancellor is in Oxfordshire to set out policies aimed at boosting growth from 10am.
Ms Reeves, who faced a major backlash to her tax-hiking Budget, is saying that Britain has been "held back" and "accepted stagnation".
But the Tories claimed Sir Keir Starmer and Ms Reeves herself are the "biggest barriers to growth".
Shadow chancellor Mel Stride said: "Hastily cobbled together announcements of growth in the 2030s will do nothing to help the businesses cutting jobs right now because of Labour's punishing jobs tax, the companies being crushed under their barrage of new regulations, or the farmers facing bankruptcy over the cruel family farm tax."
FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES:
8 hours ago10:45 Jonathan Walker
Expanding Heathrow will boost exports
And create 100,000 jobs, says Rachel Reeves
8 hours ago10:43 Jonathan Walker
And here is Heathrow
The Chancellor left her Heathrow announcement to last - now she is making it
8 hours ago10:37 Jonathan Walker
Plans for the UK's own 'Silicon Valley'
The Oxford-Cambridge corridor scheme will create what could be the UK's own Silicon Valley, the Chancellor says.
This scheme was first launched in 2003 but it hasn't happened, she says.
There will be
a new Oxford-Milton Keynes rail line road upgrades between Milton Keynes and Cambridge a series of new towns a new Cambridge Cancer Research Hospital ￡7.9bn of investment for better water supplies and new reservoirs (this seems to be a mixture of private and government money) Cambridge University will build a "flagship innovation hub" Lord Patrick Vallance will be the "champion" of the scheme - he was chief scientific adviser during the Covid pandemic
The Chancellor has announced
8 hours ago10:36 Jonathan Walker
South Yorkshire Airport backed
Government will back plans for a private, regional airport in south Yorkshire
8 hours ago10:36 Jonathan Walker
Confirmation of Old Trafford scheme
As expected, the Chancellor confirms she is backing plans for a massive redevelopment of Old Trafford in Manchester including more housing.
8 hours ago10:32 Jonathan Walker
Reeves announces more support for regions outside London and backing for mayors
The Chancellor highlights new rail schemes in the North and says there will be more infrastructure announcements in the spring.
Says she met regional mayors in December. She says investment in all regions will be "given a fair hearing" instead of pouring Government cash into London.
8 hours ago10:28 Jonathan Walker
Reeves insists the economy is growing
The Chancellor dismisses criticism of her handling of the economy suggesting business confidence is high and the UK is one of the fastest growing economies, but says she will "go further and faster" because we need to do more.
8 hours ago10:26 Jonathan Walker
￡65m to expand electric vehicle charging
Rachel Reeves insists "there is no trade off between economic growth and net zero" and announces ￡65m to expand electric vehicle charging, encouraging motorists to switch to electric cars.
And announces more offshore windfarms.
8 hours ago10:24 Jonathan Walker
Will reduce environmental requirements on developers
Reeves says she will change rules to let developers build things instead of worrying about 'the bats and the newts'.
Laws will be introduced in the spring.
8 hours ago10:22 Jonathan Walker
Reeves pledges to get immigration down
A planned white paper will set out plans to cut immigration.
8 hours ago10:21 Jonathan Walker
Plans to slash red tape will be published in March
Chancellor vows to cut regulation
8 hours ago10:20 Jonathan Walker
Spending on disability and sickness benefits will be cut
The Government aims to cut spending on disability and ill health benefits, says Reeves.
These are set to reach ￡100 billion unless action is taken.
See more details here: Plans to cut sickness benefits bill
9 hours ago10:16 Jonathan Walker
Government plans post-Brexit trade deal with India
Reeves says she wants to trade with both the US and EU
The Chancellor says she will prioritise proposals that contribute to growth and prosperity.
She also defends her trade trip to China.
And says there will be talks on a free trade agreement with India.
9 hours ago10:11 Jonathan Walker
The Chancellor delivers her speech
Politicians have "lacked the courage or the strength" to prioritise growth, says Rachel Reeves. But she promises "a whole new approach"
(Image: )
9 hours ago10:09 Jonathan Walker
Cost of living crisis isn't over
Reeves says the impact of the cost of living crisis isn't over with too many people still struggling to pay bills and mortgages.
9 hours ago10:08 Jonathan Walker
Growth is 'number one mission'
Reeves begins her speech and says without economic growth 'we cannot improve the living standards of ordinary working people'
Growth is her 'number one mission' she says.
9 hours ago10:04 Steph Spyro
The message is 'kickstart economic growth'
Journalists and business people have assembled to hear Rachel Reeves speak on a plinth that reads “kickstart economic growth”
(Image: )
9 hours ago10:03 Jonathan Walker
Reeves will vow to take on the 'blockers'
The Chancellor will make it clear she plans to build with "cranes in the sky" - and won't let "blockers" stop her.
9 hours ago10:02 Jonathan Walker
New reservoirs also planned
New reservoirs will be built near Abingdon in Oxfordshire and in the Fens near Cambridge. They will be among nine new reservoirs built as the Government has agreed for water companies to invest ￡7.9 billion to improve infrastructure.
9 hours ago10:01 Jonathan Walker
Senior Minister defends airport expansion
Allowing Heathrow to expand will be controversial with some local residents and environment campagners.
But the UK “can’t afford” to be a country that “doesn’t build runways” or other major projects, a senior minister has said.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds warned the UK risks being “left behind” if it does not go for growth.
He told BBC Breakfast: “I want people to know that things that have been too difficult in the past will be focused on, will be changed, will be delivered on, by this Government.
“It’s not just about aviation expansion, there’s a whole range of things.”
He added: “We’re not going to have endless judicial reviews effectively try to second-guess democratically-elected decisions from the elected government of the day. We will follow process, but that process has got to be one that can deliver the things.
“We simply cannot afford to say we don’t build reservoirs any more, we don’t build railways, we don’t build runways. That’s not good enough, we will be left behind.”
9 hours ago09:58 Jonathan Walker
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham delighted with Old Trafford scheme
The Chancellor is backing plans to redevelop Old Trafford.
A new or redeveloped Old Trafford can cement Manchester’s place as “the global capital of football”, the Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has said.
Manchester United are set to make a decision by the end of the season on whether to redevelop the existing stadium into an 87,000-capacity venue or build a brand-new 100,000-capacity ground.
The club will pay for whichever option they eventually choose, but the initiative has been boosted by the UK Government and Trafford Council both giving their backing to plans to provide public funds to regenerate the area around the stadium over recent days.
Burnham said the project, which also involves relocating freight terminals, will benefit other parts of the north-west, as well as his city.
He told BBC Breakfast: “This truly… it’s one of those rare projects that’s a win-win, the benefits will be felt far and wide."
9 hours ago09:55 Jonathan Walker
A new rail line is planned
East West Rail involves boosting railway links between Oxford and Cambridge with new and upgraded lines.
The scheme has three stages, with initial services from Oxford to Bletchley and Milton Keynes scheduled to begin this year.
The other two stages are reliant on Government funding and approval.
These involve services being extended from Oxford to Bedford, and then from Oxford to Cambridge via Bedford and Bletchley.
9 hours ago09:54 Jonathan Walker
Backing for Old Trafford scheme
The Chancellor will confirm she backs plans to redevelop Old Trafford.
Manchester United is eager to create a new venue by either redeveloping its current stadium to increase capacity to 87,000, or build a new ground which could hold 100,000 fans.
The club has said it will decide on its preferred option “ahead of the summer”.
The project would also involve a major regeneration of the area around Old Trafford, with residential, transport and entertainment developments.
9 hours ago09:47 Jonathan Walker
Devastating impact of winter fuel cuts
Pensioners are "feeling more ill and depressed after Labour's winter fuel payment cuts" according to a survey by one of Labours trade union allies.
Read more
9 hours ago09:44 Steph Spyro
Farmers protest against the Chancellor's inheritance tax changes
Farmer Julie Adams said she would have to find hundreds or thousands of pounds to pay for Rachel Reeves’s inheritance tax raid.
She called the Chancellor’s policy “horrendous”. Julie, from Bicester, in Oxfordshire, said: “It will make everyone scared and worried that they’ve got to find this extra money.”
Rachel Reeves: Farmers protest ahead of speech in Oxfordshire
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Watch live: Rachel Reeves gives speech on economic growth
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9 hours ago09:42 Jonathan Walker
The eyes of the world are on this speech
The UK's economic problems have been noticed around the world.
US-based world-leading financial analysts S&P Global warning the UK economy “largely stalled at the start of 2025” this week.
It said firms cut employment in January thanks partly to “widespread concerns over higher staff costs associated with the Budget changes”.
9 hours ago09:38 Jonathan Walker
Reeves forced to act after economy stalls
Why the speech today? Rachel Reeves is desperate to reassure businesses suffering as a result of her Budget decisions which included putting up National Insurance, which increases the cost of employing people.
In just one example, he's the latest warning from the British Chambers of Commerce.
Jane Gratton, Deputy Director Public Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce said: "The full impact of the changes to national insurance and the minimum wage, announced at the Budget, won’t be fully seen until later in the year. However, the warning lights on recruitment, employment and training are already flashing.
"Our latest survey paints a worrying picture of weak workforce growth, persistent hiring difficulties and cuts in workplace training. It also revealed that 55% of firms are planning to put up prices, with labour cost the main driver.
“To grow the economy, we need businesses and the workforce to thrive. Government must ease the cost-pressures on firms so they can invest in people. Working proactively with employers to tackle the long running skills crisis is likely to become even more important in the months to come.”
9 hours ago09:34 Jonathan Walker
Pension reforms to bring billions into the economy
The Chancellor will confirm plans to give pension fund managers more freedom over how they spend the money they control.
This will allow them to invest billions of "surplus" funds in UK businesses.
See more: Reeves announces massive pension reforms
9 hours ago09:31 Jonathan Walker
Keir Starmer wants to slash red tape like Thatcher
The Prime Minister vowed to cut regulation which he says is holding growth back - in a similar way to Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
Writing in The Times, Sir Keir said: "There is a morass of regulation that effectively bans billions of pounds more of investment from flowing into Britain.
"Thickets of red tape that, for all the Tories talked a good game, was allowed to spread through the British economy like Japanese knotweed.
"In the 1980s, the Thatcher government deregulated finance capital. In the New Labour era, globalisation increased the opportunities for trade. This is our equivalent."
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9 hours ago09:28 Jonathan Walker
Plans for new UK 'silicon valley'
The speech will include plans for a new UK 'silicon valley' in the Oxford and Cambridge region, including Milton Keynes.
See more on that here.
Plus, it's the worst-kept secret at Westminster that Ms Reeves will confirm her support for allowing Heathrow Airport to build a third runway.
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Chancellor Rachel Reeves will make the announcement this morning (Image: Getty)