ALMOST in every breath today Rachel Reeves spoke of making “Labour choices”.

But that is not the cuddly, Tory-lite Labour that we were promised before the election.

Instead she has reached for the party’s old comfort blanket of higher taxes, higher borrowing and higher spending.

Her massive spree means she can point to shiny news infrastructure projects and talk the language of “renewal”.

But she is now running the economy at its uppermost limits after failing to get any serious grip on welfare and our spiralling debt.

It is a high-stakes gambit designed to win over working class voters that Labour is bleeding to Reform – who the Chancellor noticeably devoted time to attacking today.

Many of those flocking to Nigel Farage do so out of growing despair that – in his words – “Britain is broken”.

It is why she made big plays on ploughing money into defence, the NHS and ending migrant hotels.

But they won’t thank the Chancellor if it means putting their taxes up even more in the Autumn…

It hasn’t been an easy 11 months for Ms Reeves – in fact, it has been brutal.

Her short Chancellorship has been blighted by the winter fuel debacle, fury over tax hikes, angry farmers and rows over welfare spending.

A YouGov survey today found just 12 per cent of voters think she is doing a good job.

Ms Reeves will hope today marks the point those paltry popularity numbers start to rise.

Or it could be the moment where things start to get even worse.