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Ex-minister Michael Gove accuses Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng of making ‘a number of mistakes’ with their mini-Budget that tanked the markets as PM kicks off Conservative Party Conference
Michael Gove tore into Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng for making ‘a number of mistakes’ in last week’s mini-Budget that caused massive panic in the markets.
The former minister, who backed Kemi Badenoch and Rishi Sunak in the Tory leadership race, hit out as the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham.
Ms Truss this morning told the BBC that there were problems with the way Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s fiscal event was communicated but backed the contents.
She has faced criticism over plans to increase Government borrowing by tens of billions of pounds at the same time as she cuts taxes for the richest.
Mr Gove has a number of speaking engagements at the conference, suggesting he does not intend to be a quiet backbencher.
And he was given a prime front row seat as a commentator on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.
Speaking before the PM appeared he said: ‘There were a number of mistakes made last Friday in the fiscal event, the mini-budget, but there is room and time to address them and to correct them. That’s the challenge this week.’
The former minister, who backed Kemi Badenoch and Rishi Sunak in the Tory leadership race, hit out as the Conservative Party Conference in Birmingham.
Ms Truss this morning told the BBC that there were problems with the way Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s fiscal event was communicated but backed the contents.
He added: ‘This is a time of profound uncertainty and concern for people across the country. We’re in grim economic circumstances, people are facing the prospects of their mortgages rising, people are looking to Liz and Kwasi and they want reassurance.
‘They want to know this plan has been well thought through, that it will work, that it will command the confidence of the money men in the markets. But they will also want to know that the Prime Minister and the Chancellor share their values.’
Ms Truss admitted blunders over the Emergency Budget today she kicks off Tory conference – but warned restive MPs not to retreat to the ‘status quo’ after the markets meltdown.
The PM is launching the gathering in Birmingham against the backdrop of the Pound’s plunge and a surge in borrowing costs following Kwasi Kwarteng’s tax-cutting emergency Budget.
She accepted that the government should have ‘laid the ground better’ before unveiling the package – which spooked traders with a lack of independent OBR costings and a plan for managing debt.
But Ms Truss said she had ‘learned’ from the events and would push on with her ‘very clear plan’ to get the economy growing again.
‘I want to reassure people that we do have a very clear plan,’ she told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.
‘I understand their worries about what has happened this week… I do accept we should have laid the ground better…
‘I have learned from that and I will make sure that in future we do a better job of laying the ground.’
Ms Truss dodged repeatedly on whether the government is now proposing to cut public spending to help balance the books, saying Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng will give those details next month.
As part of reforms to revive the economy, the definition of a small business is set to be increased from 250 employees to 500, reducing red tape for tens of thousands of firms. The government also wants to copy a French model to boost childcare.
The grim political consequences of the market turmoil for the Tories was laid bare with an Opinium poll putting Labour on 46 per cent, 19 points ahead and enough for a landslide election win. Others have shown Keir Starmer’s party with an advantage of up to 33 points.
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