London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Nov 27, 2025

Ground should have been laid for tax cuts, admits Liz Truss

Ground should have been laid for tax cuts, admits Liz Truss

Liz Truss has admitted she should have "laid the ground better" for her mini-budget, after it sparked days of market turmoil.

The prime minister told the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg she had "learned from that", but she was confident her tax cutting package would boost economic growth.

She added a decision to cut the top earner tax rate was a "decision that the chancellor made".

And she revealed it was not discussed with the whole cabinet beforehand.

The cut to the 45p rate has provoked outrage from opposition parties, and concern from some Conservative MPs.

Former minister Michael Gove said the cut displayed the "wrong values," and signalled he wouldn't vote for it.

He also said he was "profoundly concerned" about the decision to borrow to fund the tax cuts, calling it "not Conservative".

The government's mini-budget included £45bn in cuts funded by government borrowing, and revealed the government expects its two-year scheme to fix energy prices will cost £60bn in the first six months.

The announcements sparked days of turbulence in financial markets, with the pound falling to a record low against the US dollar on Monday, although it has since recovered.

The rocky economic backdrop is set to dominate this week's Conservative party conference, Ms Truss's first as Tory leader, where she faces the task of reassuring her MPs over her approach to boosting the flagging UK economy.

Speaking from the gathering in Birmingham, Ms Truss promised to win over "the hearts and minds" of Tory MPs to persuade them of her plan.

In an interview for the BBC's Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg, she said she remained committed to her approach and she was "confident" better growth would result.

"I do stand by the package we announced and I stand by the fact we announced it quickly, because we had to act," the prime minister added.

"But I do accept we should have laid the ground better. I have learned from that, and I will make sure that in future we do a better job of laying the ground."

She also defended the decision to cut the 45p income tax rate for top earners, saying it "raises very little" and made the tax system more complicated.

She added that the cut was a decision made by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng - prompting former cabinet minister and Boris Johnson loyalist Nadine Dorries to accuse her of throwing him "under a bus".

And Mr Gove, who has served in several cabinet roles in previous governments, expressed concerns about scrapping the top rate at a time when "people are suffering".

Former deputy prime minister Damian Green warned a reception at conference that the Tories would lose the next general election if "we end up painting ourselves as the party of the rich".

Labour's shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves accused the government of conducting a "mad experiment" with the economy, calling the market turmoil a "crisis made in Downing Street".

Also speaking to Laura Kuenssberg, she said investors had been spooked by the "sheer scale of the borrowing" to fund the tax cuts, alongside the decision not to publish an official economic forecast alongside the plans.

She added that the public would "pay the price" for the turbulence, and said Ms Truss had failed to understand the "anxiety and fear" about the state of the economy.

In a bid to reassure markets, the government has said it will set out how it plans to lower public debt in the medium term on 23 November.

Pushed repeatedly on whether she planned to cut public spending, Ms Truss did not say, but added she wanted to get "value for money for the taxpayer".

She did not commit to raising benefits in line with inflation, saying that a decision would be made later this autumn.

She also rejected calls to bring forward an assessment of the government's plans from the UK's budget watchdog, currently due to be published alongside the debt plan.

She added that an assessment of the spending plans was "not yet ready".

"There's no point in publishing something that's not ready. That would just cause confusion," she added.


Watch: Prime Minister Liz Truss says she stands by plans announced in the mini-budget

Michael Gove: Cutting tax for the wealthiest "a display of the wrong values"

Rachel Reeves says the government is conducting a "mad experiment" with the UK economy


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK to Slash Key Pension Tax Perk, Targeting High Earners Under New Budget
UK Government Announces £150 Annual Cut to Household Energy Bills Through Levy Reforms
UK Court Hears Challenge to Ban on Palestine Action as Critics Decry Heavy-Handed Measures
Investors Rush Into UK Gilts and Sterling After Budget Eases Fiscal Concerns
UK to Raise Online Betting Taxes by £1.1 Billion Under New Budget — Firms Warn of Fallout
Lamine Yamal? The ‘Heir to Messi’ Lost to Barcelona — and the Kingdom Is in a Frenzy
Warner Music Group Drops Suit Against Suno, Launches Licensed AI-Music Deal
HP to Cut up to 6,000 Jobs Globally as It Ramps Up AI Integration
MediaWorld Sold iPad Air for €15 — Then Asked Customers to Return Them or Pay More
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer Promises ‘Full-Time’ Education for All Children as School Attendance Slips
UK Extends Sugar Tax to Sweetened Milkshakes and Lattes in 2028 Health Push
UK Government Backs £49 Billion Plan for Heathrow Third Runway and Expansion
UK Gambling Firms Report £1bn Surge in Annual Profits as Pressure Mounts for Higher Betting Taxes
UK Shares Advance Ahead of Budget as Financials and Consumer Staples Lead Gains
Domino’s UK CEO Andrew Rennie Steps Down Amid Strategic Reset
UK Economy Stalls as Reeves Faces First Budget Test
UK Economy’s Weak Start Adds Pressure on Prime Minister Starmer
UK Government Acknowledges Billionaire Exodus Amid Tax Rise Concerns
UK Budget 2025: Markets Brace as Chancellor Faces Fiscal Tightrope
UK Unveils Strategic Plan to Secure Critical Mineral Supply Chains
UK Taskforce Calls for Radical Reset of Nuclear Regulation to Cut Costs and Accelerate Build
UK Government Launches Consultation on Major Overhaul of Settlement Rules
Google Struggles to Meet AI Demand as Infrastructure, Energy and Supply-Chain Gaps Deepen
Car Parts Leader Warns Europe Faces Heavy Job Losses in ‘Darwinian’ Auto Shake-Out
Arsenal Move Six Points Clear After Eze’s Historic Hat-Trick in Derby Rout
Wealthy New Yorkers Weigh Second Homes as the ‘Mamdani Effect’ Ripples Through Luxury Markets
Families Accuse OpenAI of Enabling ‘AI-Driven Delusions’ After Multiple Suicides
UK Unveils Critical-Minerals Strategy to Break China Supply-Chain Grip
Taylor Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia” Extends U.K. No. 1 Run to Five Weeks
UK VPN Sign-Ups Surge by Over 1,400 % as Age-Verification Law Takes Effect
Former MEP Nathan Gill Jailed for Over Ten Years After Taking Pro-Russia Bribes
Majority of UK Entrepreneurs Regard Government as ‘Anti-Business’, Survey Shows
UK’s Starmer and US President Trump Align as Geneva Talks Probe Ukraine Peace Plan
UK Prime Minister Signals Former Prince Andrew Should Testify to US Epstein Inquiry
Royal Navy Deploys HMS Severn to Shadow Russian Corvette and Tanker Off UK Coast
China’s Wedding Boom: Nightclubs, Mountains and a Demographic Reset
Fugees Founding Member Pras Michel Sentenced to 14 Years in High-Profile US Foreign Influence Case
WhatsApp’s Unexpected Rise Reshapes American Messaging Habits
United States: Judge Dressed Up as Elvis During Hearings – and Was Forced to Resign
Johnson Blasts ‘Incoherent’ Covid Inquiry Findings Amid Report’s Harsh Critique of His Government
Lord Rothermere Secures £500 Million Deal to Acquire Telegraph Titles
Maduro Tightens Security Measures as U.S. Strike Threat Intensifies
U.S. Envoys Deliver Ultimatum to Ukraine: Sign Peace Deal by Thursday or Risk Losing American Support
Zelenskyy Signals Progress Toward Ending the War: ‘One of the Hardest Moments in History’ (end of his business model?)
U.S. Issues Alert Declaring Venezuelan Airspace a Hazard Due to Escalating Security Conditions
The U.S. State Department Announces That Mass Migration Constitutes an Existential Threat to Western Civilization and Undermines the Stability of Key American Allies
Students Challenge AI-Driven Teaching at University of Staffordshire
Pikeville Medical Center Partners with UK’s Golisano Children’s Network to Expand Pediatric Care
Germany, France and UK Confirm Full Support for Ukraine in US-Backed Security Plan
UK Low-Traffic Neighbourhoods Face Rising Backlash as Pandemic Schemes Unravel
×