Overview
- Chancellor Rachel Reeves dropped a trailed income tax rise after the OBR signalled a smaller fiscal shortfall, a reversal that investors met by pushing up gilt yields and pressuring the pound.
- Labour MPs and ministers say the climbdown has further weakened Keir Starmer, with some discussing moves after the 26 November Budget, though any challenge remains contingent on political fallout.
- Wes Streeting denied organizing a coup and signalled opposition to breaking the manifesto on income tax, while declining to rule out future leadership ambitions.
- Chief of staff Morgan McSweeney faces mounting suspicion over the anti‑Streeting briefings, even as Starmer said he was assured no one in his team briefed against the health secretary.
- Speculation over succession has widened to figures such as Shabana Mahmood, Andy Burnham and Angela Rayner, and the upcoming Budget is viewed by MPs as a pivotal test for both Starmer and Reeves.