Overview

• Bell, the pensions minister and former Resolution Foundation chief, has been handed additional responsibility for economic policy and Budget drafting.
• Treasury sources stress that Financial Secretary Spencer Livermore remains Rachel Reeves’ closest ministerial colleague as the team is reconfigured.
• Opposition figures portray Bell’s rise as a prelude to higher taxes, as media resurface his past proposals on pensions, capital gains, inheritance tax and council tax reform.
• Reeves faces limited fiscal headroom and a sizeable medium‑term gap, with recent estimates ranging from around £20 billion to higher figures reported in some outlets.
• Some market commentators linked reports of Bell’s expanded role to a rise in government borrowing costs, and further appointments to Reeves’ economic advisory teams are expected in the coming weeks.