Oral Answers to Questions

Desmond Swayne Excerpts

Tuesday 9th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Rebecca Paul (Reigate) (Con)]

5. What recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of levels of Government debt interest payments on public finances.

[Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)]

23. What recent assessment she has made of the potential impact of levels of Government debt interest payments on public finances.

[The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Rachel Reeves)]

We are investing in Britain’s future and putting in place the plans needed to get Britain building again after 14 years of Tory failure. Since the election, we have had five interest rate cuts, wages have risen more in the first 10 months of this Labour Government than they did in the first 10 years of the previous Conservative Government, and we are the fastest growing economy in the G7 in the first half of this year.

--- Later in debate ---

[Rachel Reeves]

The best way to make sure that we continue to have confidence in the gilt markets is to keep the Tories and Liz Truss as far away from running the economy as possible. We have brought stability back to the economy, and there have been five cuts in interest rates. This is in sharp contrast to the disaster of Liz Truss and the clown show that we witnessed at the Reform conference at the weekend. Those two parties would lose control of spending, and push up mortgage costs and inflation. They have done it before, and they would do it all over again.

[Sir Desmond Swayne]

So why does the Chancellor think that the United Kingdom is being charged more in interest even than Greece?

[Rachel Reeves]

The spread on our gilts over the central bank rate is lower in the UK than it is in Greece, so maybe the right hon. Gentleman should look again at his evidence. The truth is that we have had five cuts in interest rates since this Government came to office. We are paying high levels of interest on the debt, but the debt was accrued by the Conservative party, which destroyed our economy and public services all at once. We are fixing the mess that the Conservatives left.