Chancellor’s speech will try to boost confidence amid challenging marketspublished at 09:40 BST
09:40 BST
Faisal Islam
Economics editor
Ahead of his first speech as chancellor, the backdrop has been testing.
Turmoil in global markets for government borrowing has pushed up costs. A few miles from the speech, Britain’s biggest manufacturer, is poised to announce thousands of redundancies. Even this morning, one of the main housing market measures showed a dip in prices for the first time in three years.
And yet surrounded by giant advanced manufacturing robots, the chancellor will strike an upbeat note containing references to optimism, resilience, grit, and that perennial economic phrase about turning a corner.
There is some substance in better economic numbers than other major economies so far in 2026.
The PM’s attempt to strike a more positive tone – alongside the weather and World Cup – has also led to some better readings on consumer and business confidence, including from all important recruiters, albeit from a low base.
At the equivalent speech for the past two years, the public has been left with a clear message of tough times, and significant tax rises ahead. Not today.
The chancellor is trying to nurture some fragile early signs that confidence is returning. The burning question is how to fill multi billion gaps in public finance plans before the Budget, in a way that minimises the economic impact. While vibes are important, policy matters more.