‘Where is the Chancellor?’: Rachel Reeves urged to cancel China trip amid gilt turmoil
Mel Stride has criticised Rachel Reeves for her absence in parliament as the UK government’s borrowing costs soar, asking the commons: “Where is the Chancellor?”
The Conservative shadow Chancellor hit out at Reeves, who is coming under pressure to cancel a long-planned trip to China and Davos, during an urgent question in the Commons.
It comes amid jitters in the financial markets as the cost of servicing UK debt surged yesterday to its highest level since 2008, while the pound continued to fall against the dollar – putting the Chancellor at risk of breaking her self-imposed fiscal rules.
Addressing Treasury chief secretary Darren Jones, who attended on Reeves’ behalf, Stride said: “Where is the Chancellor? It is a bitter regret that at this difficult time with these serious issues she herself is nowhere to be seen.”
He told MPs: “In the last 48 hours borrowing costs have reached a 27-year high and it is the Chancellor’s decisions that have led us here.
“Survey after survey is showing business confidence has simply evaporated and at the budget the Chancellor hiked up taxes, increased borrowing by an average of £32bn-a-year across the forecast and conveniently adjusted her fiscal rules to allow her to do it.”
Stride added: “Higher debt and lower growth are understandably now causing real concerns among the public, amongst businesses and in the markets.
“With these rising costs, regrettably the government may now be on course to breach their fiscal rules and the Chancellor has committed to no further tax rises.”
Speaking for the government, Jones insisted he would not break the “long-standing convention” not to comment on market movements and argued changes to government bond or gilt yields “are determined by a wide range of international and domestic factors”.
He added: “It is normal for the price and yields of gilts to vary when there are wider movements in global financial markets, including in response to economic data.
“In recent months, movement in financial markets has been largely driven by data and global geopolitical events, which is to be expected, as markets adjust to new information.”
Jones stressed: “There should be no doubt of the government’s commitment to economic stability and sound public finances; this is why meeting the fiscal rules is non-negotiable.”
He also criticised Stride’s party, claiming: “If there was one clear reason why the Conservatives suffered such a historic defeat at the last general election it was because of their performance on the economy.”
Tory MPs also shouted “where is she” in reference to Reeves non-appearance, while former Cameron-era Treasury minister Dame Harriett Baldwin accused her of having “fled to China”.
Baldwin said: “Yesterday’s extraordinary emergency statement from the Treasury to try and calm the markets paid tribute to the fact it inherited the second lowest debt in the G7.
“And is the reason that the frontbench is so empty today, the Chancellor has fled to China, that she has realised that her Budget means that she now is the arsonist?”
Treasury minister Darren Jones replied: “The Chancellor is going on her trip to China, it has been well documented for many weeks, an important visit in terms of trade and investment in the economy here in the UK.”
He said there was “no emergency statement”, insisting: “The Treasury responded to requests from journalists about headroom, as we might do in the normal way.”
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp told the Sun that: “She should be staying in the UK, fixing the mess that her Budget created.”
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Instead of jetting off to China, the Chancellor should urgently come before the House of Commons to cancel her counterproductive jobs tax and set out a real plan for growth.”