Jeremy Hunt has said the government’s insistence that the previous Conservative administration left behind a £22 billion fiscal black hole is “falling to pieces”.
At prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, Keir Starmer repeatedly referred to the government’s £22 billion budget shortfall in his answers, as Rishi Sunak attacked Labour’s plan to cut the winter fuel payment for those not receiving pension credit.
After the Conservative Party leader asked if ministers would publish the impact assessment on the decision to cut the winter fuel allowance, Starmer called on Sunak to apologise for the “black hole” left in the public finances and take “responsibility”.
The £21.9 billion figure was unveiled by chancellor Rachel Reeves following a Treasury audit just a few weeks after Labour came to power. To cover some of the shortfall, Reeves made a series of announcements — including on winter fuel payments, infrastructure projects and further measures announced when Rishi Sunak was PM, such as the planned cap on social care charges from October 2025.
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At the time, Reeves told the commons that the Conservative Party “covered up” the overspend and “ducked difficult decisions” knowing money was not available.
On 29th July, the government’s own public finance watchdog — the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) — wrote that it had not been made aware of the extent of overspends. Starmer referred to the letter, penned by OBR chair Richard Hughes, at prime minister’s questions on Wednesday.
In a major speech at the end of August, the prime minister warned that the budget set for 30th October “is going to be painful”, calling on the country to “accept short-term pain for long-term good.”
Once more, Starmer referenced the budget black hole, saying: “We have not just inherited an economic black hole, but a societal black hole.”
However, amid sustained political pressure over the government’s decision to cut the winter fuel payment, Jeremy Hunt has labelled the black hole “bogus”.
It also comes after a freedom of information request from the Financial Times newspaper, asking for an exact breakdown of the figures, was declined. The report has prompted accusations that the government is refusing to provide key details of its much-referenced “black hole”.
The shadow chancellor said: “Labour’s bogus ‘black hole’ is falling to pieces, with the government now admitting they can’t provide basic details because they aren’t sure they’re accurate.
“It’s clear that this fictitious ‘black hole’ is purely of Labour’s own making — simply a political smokescreen for their public sector pay awards. The public won’t be fooled by this shameless pre-text for tax rises.”
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