Let's not get facts in the way of a good rant.
Reeves inherited massive govt debt that has doubled in the last decade, only some of which is due to covid.
Clearly it's not going down since, but to put the blame on her is simply deluded.
You don't put blame on her for what she walked into.....but you should blame her for making it worse.
When Reeves started last July, the UK economy, under the Tories had grown relatively strongly in the first half of 2024 with GDP expanding by 0.9% in Q1 2024 (up from an initial estimate of 0.8%) and 0.5% in Q2 2024 (up from 0.4%). This made the UK the fastest-growing G7 economy during that period.
Inflation was stable at around 2% in mid-2024, meeting the Bank of England’s target. Real household disposable income per head, a key measure of living standards, was improving, with growth reported at 1.7% in Q4 2024, the fastest in two years.
Compared to now, business confidence was relatively high in early 2024, supported by economic recovery from a mild recession in 2023, with GDP growth of 0.7% in Q1 2024 outpacing other G7 nations. However, anticipation of Labour’s policy changes, including tax rises, began to dampen sentiment by mid-2024
Under Reeves however pretty much everything has gotten worse.
The economy flatlined in Q3 2024 (0% growth, revised down from initial estimates) and grew by only 0.1% in Q4 2024. By early 2025, GDP contracted by 0.1% in January, April, and May 2025, raising concerns about a potential recession. This contrasts sharply with the 0.9% and 0.5% growth in Q1 and Q2 2024 under the Conservatives.
Manufacturing and construction have been weak, with manufacturing output falling 1.1% in January 2025 and retail sales described as “very weak” in April and May 2025. The services sector, a major driver of UK growth, grew by only 0.1% in early 2025, insufficient to offset industrial declines.
Business surveys indicate companies have frozen hiring and delayed investments due to policy uncertainty, particularly after Reeves’s £25bn increase in employer national insurance contributions (NICs) in April 2025 and an inflation-busting minimum wage rise. These policies have been blamed for eroding boardroom confidence.
Reeves has faced criticism for policy U-turns, such as reversing cuts to winter fuel payments and disability benefits, which have strained public finances and increased speculation about autumn 2025 tax rises. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) halved its 2025 growth forecast from 2% to 1%, reflecting pessimism about Labour’s economic stewardship.
In 2005 the UK National Debt was less that £0.5 trillion. But then came the worldwide financial crisis of 2008 and subsequent recession. The National Debt increased rapidly and went over £1 trillion in 2011 and over £1.5 trillion in 2016. With COVID, debt exceeded £2 trillion in 2021. At the end of March 2025 the National Debt was £2.81 trillion.
In terms of Gross Domestic Product the UK National Debt in 2005 was about 38 percent of GDP.
But in the last ten years, in the wake of the Crash of 2008 and subsequent recession, the National Debt doubled to over 80 percent GDP, and exceeded 100 percent of GDP after COVID. At the end of March 2025 the National Debt was 97.7 percent of GDP.
All these were decisions that the uniparty took. I don't remember Labour voting against the economic decisions taken over covid, in fact they wanted longer lockdowns, also they have been fully behind the economic war with Russia that is partly responsible for much higher energy bills (the highest in Europe).
Labour are a part of the neo/socially liberal consensus in Europe and as such are fully deserving of the criticism for their policy decisions that have taken us here.
England
