Chief secretary to the treasury Darren Jones says there will be a spring statement on 26 MarchIn his interviews this morning Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the Treasury, was asked about reports that the government is close to finalising a revised deal with Mauritius to give it sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, on condition that the UK will continue to have control of Diego Garcia, where it operates a joint military base with the US.Jones did not give details, but he confirmed talks are ongoing. He told LBC:This is an island [Diego Garcia] that is an important military base for the UK, important to our national security. It’s right, therefore, that we secure our presence and operations on that island …But what I can’t tell you now is the kind of details, because they are mid-negotiation. That will get presented in the normal way to Parliament, like any other treaty, in due course.UK inflation unexpectedly fell in December, handing some breathing space to the chancellor, figures out this morning showed. The consumer prices index eased to 2.5%, below a reading of 2.6% in November, meaning prices rose at a slower rate.Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said the government would have to take “tough decisions” to meet its fiscal rules. The rise in government borrowing costs means further spending cuts are likely if the government is to meet its fiscal rules and Jones acknowledged that as he gave interviews this morning. He told BBC Breakfast:People at home know you can’t just keep borrowing every month to pay the bills.And where we do borrow to invest in the country’s infrastructure, the debt has to be falling as a size of the economy over the next five years.Jones said the government will not water down its plans to extend workers’ rights in the employment rights bill. In an interview on the Today programme Jones was asked about an interview on Monday where Rupert Soames, the CBI president, said the proposed changes could lead to firms laying off workers. Asked if the government would rethink the plans, Jones said: “No is the short answer.” He said giving workers more protection would be good for the economy. Continue reading…
Source link : https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2025/jan/15/pmqs-keir-starmer-kemi-badenoch-labour-conservatives-uk-politics-live
Author : Andrew Sparrow
Publish date : 2025-01-15 10:00:00
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Treasury minister warns of ‘tough decisions’ on spending amid high borrowing costs – UK politics live
