Jeremy Hunt blasts Labour’s blackhole ‘fiction’ and warns Rachel Reeves will regret lying

Jeremy Hunt has revealed what he argues is Rachel Reeves’ “most nonsense claim of all”, as he renews his attacks on Labour’s lies about the economy.

Speaking to the Sunday Times this weekend, the Shadow Chancellor said that far from Labour’s claims of inheriting the worst public finances since the Second World War, he said he “would have given my right arm to have had the inheritance” they bequeathed to Labour.

He pointed to inflation being at target and the fastest growth in the G7, combined with the Bank of England’s decision this week to cut interest rates for the first time since 2020.

Mr Hunt has now accused Labour of rapidly transforming from the New Labour image they portrayed at the election, to Old Labour; favouring tax and spend redistribution over economic growth.

He condemned the Government’s decision to ditch road and rail projects, and AI investment, as shortsighted moves that will stymie economic growth.

“I think on the evidence of the last month they are moving very rapidly from being New Labour to Old Labour.”

“What they are revealing is that they are prioritising redistribution of wealth over growth.

“If you choose to stop a lot of those capital projects in order to fund public sector pay, that is basically redistribution and it reduces our long-term growth.”

He renewed criticism on Ms Reeves’ claims about an economic blackhole earlier this week, describing the claims as “outrageous” and wrong.

He also expressed disappointment in Ms Reeves’ personal attacks, after a cordial behind-the-scenes relationship between the pair over previous years.

Mr Hunt rose above her partisan politicking, arguing: “That’s not my sort of politics and I’m not going to respond in kind”.

He also advised his successor in No. 11 Downing Street to be honest about her desire to raise taxes rather than making excuses.

He suggested: “All I would say is that if you are an old-fashioned tax and spend chancellor, you’d be much more likely to win the argument”

“If you argued it from Labour principles rather than some cock-and-bull story about a £22 billion black hole that couldn’t possibly have existed.”

The top Tory who is now leading the opposition against Labour’s fiscal plans claimed: “I suspect she regrets what she said but I’m not expecting a retraction because to do so would be to admit she has been planning these tax rises all along”.

“From her point of view, that would be fatal”.

In a sign of Tory unity against Labour, he was joined in condemning Labour’s tax and spending plans by Suella Braverman, who says Labour have ditched pensioners, those in social care and savers in favour of the union paymasters, vanity projects and gimmicks.

She compares this to the record of the previous Tory Government, describing it as “disappointing” that after 14 years of economic prudence, “we are about to see a screeching reversal of all that was achieved”.

“The era of high-tax, big-state socialism has started. And with it, we can wave goodbye to growth.

“Just when we needed to incentivise enterprise, productivity, home ownership, working and saving, Labour’s plan creates more bureaucracy, a heavier tax burden and more dependency.

She condemns what she describes as “Labour’s war on wealth, prudence and personal responsibility”.