Budget date 'before recess

CHANCELLOR Rachel Reeves has said the date for the Government's first budget will be announced before the Commons summer recess and spoke of "short-term political pain to fix Britain's foundations".

In her first major speech as Chancellor, Ms Reeves yesterday said she would assess the "spending inheritance" left behind by the Conservatives.

She said: "We face the legacy of 14 years of chaos and economic irresponsibility.

"That is why over the weekend I instructed Treasury officials to provide an assessment of our spending inheritance so that I can understand the full scale of the challenge, and I will present this to Parliament before the summer recess."