UK Chancellor accuses his predecessor of financial misconduct

UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves has accused her predecessor Jeremy Hunt of deliberately hiding the true state of the country's finances, calling his actions a “lie”. Following his announcement of a series of spending cuts, Reeves expressed outrage at the discovery of a £22bn funding shortfall left by the Conservative party.

Reeves claimed Hunt knowingly and intentionally misled both the House of Commons and the country about the financial situation. He also alleged that the Tories had promised tax cuts during the election campaign, fully aware of the £22bn deficit in the public finances. Reeves described this behavior as “beyond recklessness and irresponsibility” and “unforgivable”, saying they should never again be allowed to control the nation's finances.

In response, Hunt expressed his disappointment and anger at being labeled a liar. He has criticized the new government's political approach, saying these accusations discredit the political process.

While Reeves refrained from calling Hunt a liar during his speech in the House of Commons, he did not hold back in his comments to the media afterward. He reiterated his accusations, saying the previous Conservative government failed to provide independent pay review bodies with competition for what was affordable this year. These bodies advise the government on the annual pay of the public sector, including NHS employees, based on the government's powers.

Reeves revealed that he was not aware of this omission until he assumed the role of chancellor. It claimed implementing the pay review bodies' recommendations would cost £9.4bn and called on government departments to absorb £3.2bn to reduce the cost of resolving disputes with public sector workers.

Reeves admitted he had to make “difficult decisions” including suspending the winter fuel payment for some pensioners to save £1.5bn a year. He warned that more difficult choices are on the horizon, stressing the importance of these decisions to secure the nation's finances and control public spending.