The Government said after entering office that it needed to fill a £22 billion “black hole” in the public finances.
Ms Reeves is said to have since identified a far larger £40 billion funding gap which she will seek to plug to protect key departments from real-terms cuts and put the economy on a firmer footing.
Here’s everything we know and what we might expect from the Budget:
– Private schools: From January, the Government plans to remove the VAT exemption and business rates relief for private schools to enable funding for 6,500 new teachers in state schools. The French and German ambassadors to the UK have called for international schools to be excluded from the plans.
– Education and childcare:Some £1.4 billion has been announced already to rebuild crumbling schools, as well as a tripling of investment in free breakfast clubs, £1.8 billion for the expansion of Government-funded childcare, and £44 million to …