Joe Mayes

The last person to suffer a productivity downgrade of the kind Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves faces in the run-up to a UK budget just happens to be one of the Tory predecessors she blames for her predicament.

Rachel Reeves is coming under pressure to increase the buffer against her fiscal rules at next month’s UK budget, to create what one economist called a “virtuous circle” that quells bond-market uncertainty and ends the need for further tax rises this parliament.

The UK Treasury has told ministers it is clamping down on the use of emergency government funds, as Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves seeks to keep a tight grip on public spending.

I’m Joe Mayes, a UK government reporter in London. Today we’re looking at the budget challenges faced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. Send us feedback and tips to ecodaily@bloomberg.net. And if you aren’t yet signed up to receive this newsletter, you can do so here.

Critics and allies alike often cite May as the make-or-break moment for Keir Starmer. Inside his UK government, many are increasingly worried that November is his moment of greatest peril.

Hi there, it’s Joe Mayes, a UK politics reporter in London. Hope you enjoy today’s Readout, with a special extract from my new book.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has strengthened his oversight of Britain’s economic policy by forming a new board of key figures from 10 Downing Street and the Treasury, tasked with boosting growth and maintaining relations with business ahead of a crunch budget in the autumn.

UK Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said he’s optimistic Britain will reach a deal to remove 25% US tariffs on the country’s steel sector, as talks drag on months after Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President Donald Trump agreed a broader tariff-reduction deal.

King Charles III will host Donald Trump for a state visit in September, the second time the US president will have received the UK’s highest honor offered to a visiting dignitary.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey has warned the world’s largest banks against issuing their own stablecoins, setting up a potential clash with President Donald Trump’s administration and its backing of the digital assets.