A Treasury official, also not one of the cited individuals, said growth would be a dual mission for both the prime minister’s and chancellor’s offices. They added the Treasury would drive growth policy across Whitehall, that every department would have a focus on growth and Burnham’s pledge of “good growth in every postcode” would take the whole government working as one to achieve.
Burnham told MPs on Tuesday that he believed growth had to be “driven with the full authority of the very center of government, in close partnership with the Treasury.” Louise Haigh, his first secretary who has previously described the Treasury as “imperial,” joked about the change of responsibilities Wednesday: “It’s a little bit of a chip on its empire.”
Britain’s GDP grew by 0.4 percent in the three months to June, while rising bond yields have left Healey with the highest cost of servicing government debt for decades. Both squeeze his ability to intervene in key industries. Burnham has refused to rule out tax rises in the budget.
One banking lobbyist briefed separately on the event said Healey’s speech could be “shaped by market movements” seen this week, with the finance minister likely using it to calm bond traders with a pro-growth but policy-lite approach.
The speech is also likely to touch on Burnham’s promises to “reindustrialize” Britain, given the continuing focus on the defense industry. Healey is under pressure to pledge that Britain’s military spending will reach 3 percent of GDP by 2030, as he demanded when he resigned as the U.K.’s defense minister earlier this year. He has said he will not name a date for hitting 3 percent until next year.
James Fitzgerald contributed reporting.
