CHANCELLOR Rachel Reeves is creating a “lastminute.com” Budget, with experts warning that it appears “the final script is still being frantically edited behind the scenes”.
In recent months, there has been a steady stream of leaks to the press about possible Budget measures – from hikes to income tax to subsequent U-turns.
Reeves has not yet confirmed what will happen at the Autumn Budget on Wednesday next week. But financial experts and business owners said it feels like there is still no plan in place.
A lastminute.com Budget
Colette Mason, Author & AI Consultant at London-based Clever Clogs AI, said the whole thing feels hashed together.
She continued: “This absolutely feels like a ‘lastminute.com’ Budget. We are watching a Chancellor ‘vibe code’ the economy, leaking policies to gauge the backlash before committing the data.
“Previous budgets were detailed ministerial roadmaps; this feels like we are crowdsourcing the destination (still written in pencil) in a shambolic policy popularity contest. Should the government really be doing A/B split testing with the nation’s future?”
Darryl Dhoffer, Founder at Bedford-based The Mortgage Geezer, said the u-turns are indicative of chaotic decision-making.
He added: “Welcome to the political amphitheatre. This whole Budget run-up has been less about calm choreography than ministers frantically reading the crowd’s temper to gauge sentiment.
“You can’t help but feel that the final Budget script is still being frantically edited behind the scenes. A potential politically explosive Income Tax rise was swiftly and publicly abandoned due to the roar of dissent from the Chancellor’s own backbenches.
“This forced retreat proves the strategy was not fully set. The Chancellor has now been compelled to adopt a strategy of stealth and subterfuge.
“The focus appears to have shifted to freezing or lowering tax thresholds, a less obvious but arguably more damaging manoeuvre that drags millions into higher tax brackets via fiscal drag.”
Media backlash
Ben Perks, Managing Director at Stourbridge-based Orchard Financial Advisers, said it appears the government doesn’t have a clue.
He continued: “The Chancellor still has her hand firmly stuffed down the back of the sofa in a desperate hunt to find a few more quid.
“I think the government may have had the Budget nailed down when the Chancellor gave her curious pre-Budget speech earlier this month, but the public and media backlash have caused them to pivot in order to save their jobs.
“I suspect nobody knows what will be announced in the Budget even today, including the Labour front benchers.”
Antonia Medlicott, Founder & MD at London-based Investing Insiders, described it as a “rollercoaster”.
She added: “I’ve never known the lead-up to any Budget to be quite as much of a rollercoaster ride. I can’t claim to know whether there is a purposeful strategy behind all of the past few weeks’ leaking, pitch-rolling, u-turning and flip-flopping, but it’s only served to cause even more concern and confusion for a general public already exhausted by years of financial uncertainty and worry.
“Perhaps there is a great master plan that will be unveiled to us on Wednesday, but right now, it certainly seems like there’s still a blank Word document open at the Treasury.”
Kate Underwood, Managing Director at Southampton-based Kate Underwood HR and Training, said it was a “pantomime”.
She continued: “With less than a week to go, this Budget is starting to feel more like a full-on pantomime than a serious plan. Has Rachel Reeves got it nailed down? Oh no she hasn’t.
“From where I’m sitting, as a small business owner working with other small businesses every day, it looks like ministers are still behind the curtain scrambling to rewrite the script and checking the news to see what’s getting the loudest boos. It’s giving big ‘someone forgot their lines’ energy.
“We don’t need more smoke and mirrors or dramatic entrances. We need real support, clear decisions and less of the glittery fluff. If this Budget is meant to be the grand finale, then please let it land.
“Small businesses are sick of being cast as the underdog with no spotlight. We’re the backbone of the economy, not the comic relief.”
Scott Gallacher, Director at Leicester-based Rowley Turton, said the government is “scrabbling” for ideas.
He added: “Given the press coverage of Rachel Reeves’ supposed Budget policies and the constant flip-flopping on these, I doubt anything is set in stone.
“Rather than a carefully thought-out economic strategy built around her growth agenda, it’s looking more like scrabbling down the back of the settee to find some loose change for the electricity meter.”
Rob Mansfield, Independent Financial Advisor at Tonbridge-based Rootes Wealth Management, said Labour have no confidence.
He continued: “I can believe that the Chancellor and her team have the Budget on a giant spreadsheet and are changing numbers almost daily, trying to find that magic number that fills the black hole without further damaging their popularity ratings.
“There’s an uneasy balance to be had between the more radical back bench and the supposed fiscal discipline of the front bench. Labour haven’t seemed assured or confident since they took power so there’s every chance we’ll get another pastygate.”
Patricia McGirr, Founder at Burnley-based Repossession Rescue Network, said the Budget appears to be being made at the “eleventh hour”.
She continued: “This doesn’t feel like a Budget nailed down. It feels lightly glued and held together with duct tape. If this were a Blue Peter project, we’d be looking at an egg-box Budget held up with sticky back plastic, not a fiscal plan built for a country under strain.
“Rachel Reeves might be the Chancellor, but right now she’s Rachel from Accounts watching public sentiment turn from fear to downright fuming. When voters are this anxious, the temptation for ministers to refresh the headlines before they refresh the spreadsheets is huge.
“This has all the markings of an eleventh-hour Budget shaped as much by mood music as by long-term strategy. A country in this much financial distress deserves more than policies patched together the night before.”
Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash
