Prime minister Liz Truss will be facing MPs today for the first time since chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s £43bn mini-budget tax giveaway unleashed chaos in the financial markets.
Tories have returned to Westminster in a restive mood following the break for the party conferences, with their ratings tanking in opinion polls and economists questioning whether Mr Kwarteng’s plans are sustainable.
There was further turmoil yesterday after the Bank of England announced that its emergency support operation to protect pension funds would end this week.
Speaking in Washington, BoE governor Andrew Bailey said there could be no further support beyond Friday and it was up to the funds concerned to rebalance their holdings.
“My message to the funds involved – you’ve got three days left now. You have got to get this done,” he said.
His comments triggered the pound to fall back again against the dollar, to its lowest rate since 29 September.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also criticised the mini-budget yet again, saying the chancellor’s tax cuts would boost growth in the short-term, but it would “complicate the fight” against soaring prices.
