The Shadow Financial Secretary has warned of a potential future spike in inflation due to Labour’s spending policies, despite recent figures showing a fall in the UK’s inflation rate.
Nigel Huddleston MP welcomed the drop in inflation but expressed concerns about the current Government’s economic decisions.
Official figures revealed UK inflation fell to 1.7 per cent in September, its lowest level in over three years.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that lower airfares and petrol prices were the main drivers behind the fall in inflation. This drop was larger than expected, with economists having predicted a 1.9 per cent fall.
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The current rate now sits below the Bank of England’s 2 per cent target, potentially paving the way for further interest rate cuts next month.
Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, stated that the drop in price rises “will be welcome news for millions of families”.
Speaking to GB News, Huddleston criticised Labour’s “inflation-busting pay rises” and other spending commitments, suggesting they could compromise the downward trend in inflation.
He argued that the recent positive economic news was largely a result of the “previous Government’s efforts”, rather than current Labour policies.
However, he emphasised that more work is needed to protect working people, adding that the Government is “focused on bringing back growth and restoring economic stability to deliver on the promise of change”.
He said: “It’s obviously good news that inflation is falling again. Of course, a lot of the dynamics of the economy mean that inflation figures are coming down largely as a result of the work of the previous Government.
“But it’s good news, because, of course, this was a key strategy and key target of the last government and we had to make difficult decisions in order to bring inflation down.
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“What this Government’s been doing with inflation-busting pay rises, for example, might compromise the direction of travel there.
“I welcome the numbers, but I fear what may come next.”
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He further criticised Labour’s approach, saying: “This Government, since they came to power, has had a £10billion splurge on inflation-busting pay increases, spent billions of pounds on GB Energy, billions of pounds on a national wealth fund, and a whole bunch of other announcements and measures.”
Huddleston argued that these spending decisions could potentially reverse the progress made in reducing inflation.
He then accused Labour of “economic incompetence”, citing their spending decisions as potentially worsening any inherited financial challenges.
He stated: “If there is a black hole, let’s be clear, it’s of their own making.”
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He added: “We’re talking about billions of pounds out of a total Government spending of £1.2trillion as well.
“This is all in the context of decisions that a Government makes about its tax and spending plans.”
The Shadow Financial Secretary questioned the government’s fiscal strategy, asking: “Even if there was a multi-billion pound black hole that they said that they inherited, then why dig that hole deeper with all of these additional spending commitments?
“It shows utter incompetence by this Government and this Chancellor.”
