Autumn Statement: Cuts, Brexit and the political battles to come

The important judgement connected the Autumn Statement volition beryllium does what we heard from Chancellor Jeremy Hunt connected Thursday magnitude to making a atrocious concern a small little atrocious oregon does it marque it worse?

Here's the occupation for the government: adjacent if a acceptable of ideas makes a grim concern a small little grim, it is inactive a grim situation. And it's apt ministers volition get the blasted for that.

The coming governmental statement volition beryllium each astir who is judged to beryllium the competent and trustworthy stewards of very, precise hard times.

Here are a fewer things that stood retired for maine from the assorted interviews connected Friday morning:

Labour judge the size of the fiscal "black hole" acceptable retired by the Office for Budget Responsibility.

So the presumption of commercialized betwixt the Conservatives and Labour connected this lucifer up.

But past determination are the argumentation prime differences betwixt them, and the different parties.

Take 1 example: Labour would go aft alleged non doms, Mr Hunt told BBC Radio 4's Today programme helium has chosen not to.

Then determination is income tax.

The authorities chose to marque the champion paid wage more.

And they chose that, implicit time, much radical should wage income taxation and wage much of it.

That is the effect of freezing the levels, the thresholds, astatine which you commencement paying it oregon wage more, arsenic net summation implicit time.

Labour, meanwhile, are determined to say, for present astatine least, arsenic small astir income taxation arsenic possible.

Have a ticker present of a small clip from the latest BBC Newscast, wherever I tried, and failed, to get the Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves to acceptable retired her instincts connected income tax.

You person to wonderment however agelong that presumption of saying thing connected income taxation volition hold.

Neither the Conservatives nor Labour privation to fundamentally change the UK's narration with the EU.

Jeremy Hunt said connected Today that "unfettered trade" was "very beneficial" to maturation but rejoining the EU azygous marketplace would not beryllium "the close mode to boost growth" due to the fact that voters had demanded Brexit successful bid to get escaped of state of movement, unlimited migration from and to the EU.

In different words, helium appeared to tacitly admit rejoining the azygous marketplace would assistance with growth, but it was politically unpalatable.

And Labour hold - they don't privation to reopen the statement astir the azygous marketplace oregon the customs union, the 2 large economical structures of the EU.

Instead, Rachel Reeves said determination were different elements of the Brexit woody "we tin fix" arsenic she sees it - pointing to a veterinary statement with Brussels and the communal designation of nonrecreational qualifications, for example.

And finally, a connection astir cuts. When is simply a chopped a cut, and erstwhile isn't it a cut?

The pursuing thoughts travel courtesy of Peter Barnes, the BBC's elder governmental analyst.

The Autumn Statement acceptable retired a program for the authorities to make £55bn from a operation of taxation rises and spending little than they had planned to.

So, by the twelvemonth 2027-28 the wide effect of the argumentation decisions announced, excluding energy, is expected to beryllium a nett summation to the Treasury of £55bn.

That's made up of £30bn from spending argumentation decisions and £25bn from taxation argumentation decisions.

The £30bn compression successful nationalist spending is simply a chopped compared to what had antecedently been planned. It is not a chopped compared to existent levels of spending.

As the chancellor said: "Overall spending successful nationalist services volition proceed to rise, successful existent terms, for the adjacent 5 years".

But it volition emergence little rapidly than planned from 2025-26, truthful the Treasury is redeeming wealth compared to what was expected.

It's besides existent that the precise constricted maturation successful wide nationalist spending supra ostentation volition astir surely mean existent cuts for galore departments.

Defence and overseas improvement spending are protected, and it seems inevitable that wellness volition proceed to devour up a disproportionate stock of the other money.

So that means existent word cuts compared to existent levels of spending elsewhere.