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Financial Statement and Budget Report 2025-11-26
26 November 2025
Lead MP
Rachel Reeves
Debate Type
General Debate
Tags
ImmigrationEconomyTaxation
Other Contributors: 10
At a Glance
Rachel Reeves raised concerns about financial statement and budget report 2025-11-26 in the House of Commons. Other MPs contributed to the debate.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Lead Contributor
Opened the debate
The Chancellor of the Exchequer opened by criticising the early release of OBR's analysis. She highlighted her government's achievements over the last 16 months, including reforms to planning and visa systems, raising taxes on business and the wealthy to fund NHS, and changing fiscal rules inherited from Conservatives. She emphasised that these were necessary choices for a fairer Britain with investment in public services, stability of finances, and economic growth. The Chancellor reiterated her commitment to no return to austerity, maintaining investment, cutting cost of living, and reducing debt and borrowing. She announced upgrades in economic growth forecasts due to the government's measures and criticised the previous Tory government's legacy for leaving communities behind.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
Leeds West
The Chancellor detailed her government’s plan to boost trade, investment, innovation, and support working people. She announced widening eligibility for enterprise incentives, expanding the Enterprise Management Incentive scheme, re-engineering EIS and VCT schemes, and introducing UK listings relief. The chancellor also announced reforms to ISA system from April 2027, retaining a full £20,000 allowance while designating £8,000 exclusively for investment. She stated her commitment to retain the lowest G7 corporation tax rate and introduced a new 40% first year allowance for businesses.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
The Labour Government is committed to economic growth through targeted investments. These include £13 billion of flexible funding for mayors across seven regions, business rates retention pilots in the west of England and Liverpool city region until 2029, a £30 million investment in the Kernow industrial growth fund, and the establishment of the Leeds city fund to support local regeneration projects.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
The Labour Government also invests heavily in sectors like nuclear power at Sizewell C and Culham, reducing electricity prices for manufacturing businesses. The government will provide further funding to increase planning capacity and implement John Fingleton’s report on cutting red tape for the nuclear industry.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
Defence investments include supporting initiatives like Team Derby in Leeds, saving British Steel in Scunthorpe, and changing procurement policies to buy British when necessary. The government is also building the UK’s first small modular nuclear reactors with Rolls-Royce at Wylfa in Wales.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
The benefits of investment must be felt across all regions, including £370 million for Northern Ireland, £505 million for the Welsh Government, and £820 million for Scotland over the spending review period.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
The fiscal rules ensure economic stability by maintaining a balance between borrowing and tax receipts. The Labour Government is reducing public sector net borrowing while supporting investment, with plans to move into surplus by 2028-29.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
Contrasting the current government's policies, the Labour Government protects the economy and reduces debt inherited from previous Conservative administrations. They are delivering on promises to improve public services like schools and hospitals through targeted investments.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
St Helens North
Reeves emphasised the importance of addressing fraud, waste, and inefficiency in public spending. She announced reforms to claw back excess profits from hotels used for asylum seekers and proposed measures against illegal migration and working. Additionally, she outlined plans to reform the welfare system by reintroducing face-to-face assessments and changes to universal credit that would help 15,000 people return to work. Reeves also mentioned funding apprenticeships for young people under 25 and reforms to Motability scheme to reduce luxury vehicle subsidies.
Rachel Reeves
Lab
Darlington
The Chancellor's Budget introduces a high value council tax surcharge for properties worth over £2 million to tackle wealth inequality. The Government also plans to cap salary sacrifice contributions at £2,000 and introduce reforms in business tax relief, support for small businesses, motoring taxes, taxi industry competition, landfill tax, loan charge settlement, tobacco duties, alcohol duties, vaping products duty, gambling taxes, and child poverty reduction policies such as ending the two-child limit on welfare benefits.
Nigel Huddleston
Con
Droitwich and Evesham
Calls for an increase in tax to address the cost of living concerns.
Shadow Response
None
Shadow Response
The Labour shadow minister criticises the Conservative government for policies that push children into poverty, highlighting the failure of the two-child limit and its impact on families. She announces the removal of this policy, which will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, marking the largest reduction in child poverty over a Parliament since records began.
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Assessment & feedback
Summary accuracy
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