The Prime Minister Keir Starmer has declared he is proud of the government’s 2025 Budget and denied allegations that he or Chancellor Rachel Reeves misled the public or Cabinet over the state of the public finances in the run-up to the Budget. In a media statement, Starmer defended the Budget as a set of fair choices intended to stabilise public finances, support public services and protect vulnerable groups. Starmer maintained that neither he nor the Chancellor had concealed information and insisted that Treasury officials had acted properly throughout the Budget process. He said the government would continue to pursue its wider programme of reforms, including changes to welfare, energy policy and public investment. AP News reported that neither Starmer nor Reeves had any intention of resigning despite calls from opposition benches. Opposition parties, including the  Conservative party and Reform UK, claim Reeves exaggerated a fiscal black hole to justify £26 billion in tax rises, citing more optimistic early forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). In response Starmer rejected suggestions of deceit or misrepresentation by the government. He insisted that decisions were made on the basis of worst case productivity forecasts and that the Budget outcome reflected necessary trade-offs to ensure fiscal resilience. Critics argue that the OBR had as early as September informed the Treasury that the shortfall was likely smaller than earlier assumed and that by October it had been eliminated. The premature leak of the OBR’s Economic and Fiscal Outlook hours before Reeves began delivering the Budget complicated the narrative. The error was described as serious by members of the government. Nevertheless, Starmer maintained the Budget adhered to the manifesto in respect of not raising income tax, VAT, or national insurance rates. He argued threshold freezes and tax increases elsewhere were within the mandate promised to voters. Labour insiders point to headline measures such as lifting the two-child benefit cap, raising the national minimum wage, and pledges to reduce energy bills and support low-income households. These are offered as evidence the Budget was not simply about fiscal tightening but aimed at redistribution and social protection. Despite public disquiet, polling shows a significant portion of Britons believe the Budget leaves them and the country worse off Starmer argued the government must act decisively to confront economic challenges left by the previous administration. Calls for investigations into whether the OBR or Treasury misled markets or voters have come from opposition parties and watchdog groups. At present neither the PM nor the Chancellor has signalled planned resignations. Starmer signalled that the government remains committed to a broader reform agenda including welfare, cost-of-living relief, and long-term fiscal stability. For now the Budget stands. The Budget introduced tax measures worth about twenty six billion pounds, according to figures published by the Office for Budget Responsibility. These included changes to capital gains, adjustments to pension tax relief, and extended freezes on income tax thresholds. The Guardian reported that some of the measures prompted concern among voters who feared the Budget would leave them worse off, while YouGov polling indicated that a majority of the public believed the Budget would have a negative effect both personally and nationally.  ...