ANDREW NEIL: Labour believes in deficit reduction on the never-never. The more Healey talked of prudence, the more we noticed his profligacy…

Andrew Neil argues that Chancellor John Healey’s claims of fiscal discipline sit uneasily with rising borrowing and a worsening economic outlook. He says Labour’s repeated promise to reduce the deficit relies on spending cuts in later years that are unlikely to happen.

The article says the OBR raised its growth forecast for 2026 to 1.2 per cent but cut next year’s forecast from 1.6 to 1 per cent, while inflation is expected to approach 4 per cent early next year. It puts the 2026-27 deficit forecast at £132 billion, and says Labour’s plans add £325 billion in borrowing compared with the forecasts inherited in 2024. Debt interest is forecast at about £120 billion this year and £160 billion annually by 2031; the article also cites planned real-terms spending cuts of 2.3 per cent in many areas from 2028-29.