Gabrielle Wilde
Guest Reporter
Political commentator Matthew Goodwin has launched a scathing attack on Labour's economic credibility, dismissing their financial explanations as "absolute nonsense".
Speaking on GB News, Goodwin highlighted how respected figures including Paul Johnson, head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, have rejected Labour's economic claims.
The criticism came as former Labour MP Bill Rammell attempted to defend the government by citing the Office for Budget Responsibility's statements about previous Conservative forecasts.
He said: "Everybody in Westminster knows what Labour are trying to do. "I understand why they're trying to do it. I understand the politics saying 'It's not us, guv. It was the people who came before.'
"But no one's buying it anymore. Which is why, as we sit here and as of December 24th Keir Starmer's ratings are minus 32 Rachel Reeves is basically the same.
"That's what I'd call Prince Andrew territory in the polling world. Everybody can see through this.
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"I think for me this year, it was about the political choices that this Labour government has made. We always knew that Labour were going to be bad with the economy, because Labour are always bad with the economy.
"The only time Labour has been good with the economy is New Labour, when they inherited much of the legacy of the Conservative administration. The thing that really got me was two choices.
"Let's smash British pensioners to save 1.5 billion, while not doing anything with our asylum system, which is costing us 5.4 billion.
"Let's smash family farms up and down the country to save 500 million. Let's give countries around the world 100 million in a misguided hope that it will stop migration upstream.
"We even just found £11 million for for Syria out of nowhere. That's about 35,000 winter fuel payments for British pensioners that we could have given. It's just these little political choices that the Labour government has made."
His comments follow a series of concerning economic indicators, including dampened growth forecasts from the Centre for Economic and Business Research.
The Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) has revealed that Rachel Reeves's October Budget has led to lower GDP forecasts than a year ago.
The CEBR now expects GDP growth of just 1.3 per cent in 2025 and 1.4 per cent for 2026, down from previous predictions of 1.9 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively.
The report directly attributes these downward revisions to policy changes announced in Labour's inaugural Budget, including alterations to Capital Gains Tax and employers' National Insurance Contributions.
These changes are expected to "dampen private sector activity, notably on the investment front," according to the CEBR report.
In the longer term, the economy is projected to maintain a growth rate of 1.8%, with the UK retaining its sixth place position in the World Economic League Table over the next 15 years.
The immediate economic impact under Labour has been stark, with official ONS data showing zero growth in the July to September period.
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Speaking on GB News, Goodwin highlighted how respected figures including Paul Johnson, head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, have rejected Labour's economic claims.
The criticism came as former Labour MP Bill Rammell attempted to defend the government by citing the Office for Budget Responsibility's statements about previous Conservative forecasts.
He said: "Everybody in Westminster knows what Labour are trying to do. "I understand why they're trying to do it. I understand the politics saying 'It's not us, guv. It was the people who came before.'
"But no one's buying it anymore. Which is why, as we sit here and as of December 24th Keir Starmer's ratings are minus 32 Rachel Reeves is basically the same.
"That's what I'd call Prince Andrew territory in the polling world. Everybody can see through this.
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"I think for me this year, it was about the political choices that this Labour government has made. We always knew that Labour were going to be bad with the economy, because Labour are always bad with the economy.
"The only time Labour has been good with the economy is New Labour, when they inherited much of the legacy of the Conservative administration. The thing that really got me was two choices.
"Let's smash British pensioners to save 1.5 billion, while not doing anything with our asylum system, which is costing us 5.4 billion.
"Let's smash family farms up and down the country to save 500 million. Let's give countries around the world 100 million in a misguided hope that it will stop migration upstream.
"We even just found £11 million for for Syria out of nowhere. That's about 35,000 winter fuel payments for British pensioners that we could have given. It's just these little political choices that the Labour government has made."
His comments follow a series of concerning economic indicators, including dampened growth forecasts from the Centre for Economic and Business Research.
The Centre for Economic and Business Research (CEBR) has revealed that Rachel Reeves's October Budget has led to lower GDP forecasts than a year ago.
The CEBR now expects GDP growth of just 1.3 per cent in 2025 and 1.4 per cent for 2026, down from previous predictions of 1.9 per cent and 1.6 per cent respectively.
The report directly attributes these downward revisions to policy changes announced in Labour's inaugural Budget, including alterations to Capital Gains Tax and employers' National Insurance Contributions.
These changes are expected to "dampen private sector activity, notably on the investment front," according to the CEBR report.
In the longer term, the economy is projected to maintain a growth rate of 1.8%, with the UK retaining its sixth place position in the World Economic League Table over the next 15 years.
The immediate economic impact under Labour has been stark, with official ONS data showing zero growth in the July to September period.
Find Out More...