Watch in full: Rachel Reeves makes major pre-Budget speech

Watch as Rachel Reeves set out her economic priorities in a pre-Budget speech on Tuesday (4 November).

The Chancellor refused to rule out hiking income tax, VAT or National Insurance to plug a hole in the public finances as she was asked to address speculation that she will break Labour’s manifesto commitments on tax rises.

During the speech in Downing Street, Ms Reeves hinted she will take painful decisions later this month as she said “easy answers” to fix economic issues would be “irresponsible”.

When asked whether she would raise taxes for working people, Ms Reeves said: “I will set out the individual policies of the budget until the 26th of November. That’s not what today is about. Today is about setting the context up for that budget.”

Speculation has mounted about the possibility that the chancellor will break one of Labour’s main manifesto pledges on tax.

In their 2024 manifesto, the party promised not to raise any of the main taxes.

It vowed not to “increase taxes on working people”, meaning they would not raise National Insurance, the basic, higher, or additional rates of Income Tax, or VAT.

On Monday (3 November), Sir Keir Starmer said it would be a “Labour budget based on Labour values”, though he added that there would be “tough but fair decisions”.

Speaking at a party meeting in Westminster, he told Labour MPs that the long-term impact of Conservative austerity and a botched Brexit deal “is worse than even we feared”.