14 January 2025, 08:23

Starmer backs Reeves until 2029: LBC analysis

By EJ Ward

Rachel Reeves is set to attend a Cabinet meeting at Downing Street on Tuesday amid intensifying market turbulence and mounting questions over her position as Chancellor.

The embattled Chancellor’s future was cast into doubt after Sir Keir Starmer appeared to hedge his support for her, expressing confidence in her capabilities but pointedly refusing to guarantee she would remain in her post until the next general election.

Hours later, Downing Street sought to quell speculation, stating that Ms Reeves would remain Chancellor for “the whole of this Parliament.”

The Chancellor returned from a trip to China to find fresh questions over the Government’s ability to adhere to its own fiscal rules, amid rising borrowing costs and fears of economic stagnation.

“Either he ties his hands and keeps her into 2029, or he opens speculation as to her position. Unfortunately, Starmer seems to have bungled it and done both at the same time,” Simon Finkelstein, a former special adviser to Jeremy Hunt and Dominic........

© LBC