Overview
- The cross-Whitehall group will be co-chaired by economic adviser Baroness Minouche Shafik and Treasury minister Torsten Bell, meeting weekly ahead of the 26 November Budget.
- Members include Darren Jones, chiefs of staff Morgan McSweeney and Katie Martin, business adviser Varun Chandra, and communications leads Ben Nunn and Tim Allan.
- Allies say the initiative was jointly agreed with Chancellor Rachel Reeves to keep businesses and City leaders engaged and to prioritise growth measures.
- The reset follows Reeves’s October Budget that raised employers’ national insurance by about £25bn and proposed a large rise in the minimum wage.
- Downing Street said Starmer told ministers to reassure business, focus on planning and infrastructure, and cut regulators and civil servants before the fiscal statement.