The UK Labour government announced its plans to reveal a new budget after over 14 years of being outside the ruling position. The government, headed by the Labour Party prime minister Keir Starmer, will focus more on long-term growth as part of the prime minister’s plan to “fire up” Britain’s economy.
The Labour government warned it would have to make tough decisions in the upcoming budget to achieve its goals. Starmer revealed that the budget might possibly involve significant tax increments and reductions in public spending. The budget will also include changes in the fiscal policies to enable borrowing of billions of pounds.
The government still assured the public that the Labour Party will have “iron fist” control over public spending to prevent any fund misappropriation. However, due to changes in fiscal policies, the public has not shown complete support for the government’s plans. The change that met the most significant disapproval is the plan to scrap the winter fuel levy for pensioners, which received only 8% approval from the public.
The left-oriented Labour Party took control from the decade-plus control of the Conservatives in July in what many termed a “brutal defeat.” The Starmer-led government promised to work together with the people, taking note of the increased gap between politicians and the people they serve.
The Labour government reveals a ‘huge gap’ in the budget
The British Minister of Finance Rachel Reeves revealed on October 16 that the budget had a huge gap. The finance minister also confirmed that she planned to raise over 40 billion pounds to fill the gap.
While there are no confirmations on the tax raise expected in October 30’s budget statement, economists have been speculating about what UK residents can expect. According to Reuters, the Institute of Fiscal Studies speculated that the Labour government might announce a 25 billion pound tax raise to deal with the deficits.
On Wednesday, another economist from the auditing and financial advisory company Deloitte said that the Labour Party might announce a 35 billion pounds tax raise.
The economist Amanda Tickel also revealed the increased attention the long-awaited budget statement is getting. According to Tickel, the Labour government, which hasn’t been in power for over 14 years, will try its best to make a statement with the upcoming budget announcement. Additionally, the economist also revealed that the attention the budget statement is getting comes from the possible tax breadth that hasn’t yet been ruled out, the recent entry of the government into office, and other factors.
Circle predicts an introduction of stablecoin regulations in the UK
Just days before the expected budget statement from the Labour government, Circle’s head of policy, Dante Disparte, predicted that UK regulators might introduce stablecoin regulations within the next few months.
Disparte mentioned that the current approach to regulations might be a good thing for UK crypto investors, considering the 2022 FTX scandal.
“…I think many in the U.K. and in other countries would argue that they’re vindicated in not having jumped in too quickly and fully regulating and bringing the environment onshore because of all the issues we’ve seen in crypto over the last few years,”
-Dante Disparte, Circle’s Head of Policy
Disparte still insisted on the need for sensible regulations for stablecoins and digital asset trading. The Circle executive also hinted that protecting investors from risks might prevent crypto from offering UK residents advantages. Notably, the Labour government has yet to mention anything concerning crypto regulations.
