Starmer leads fightback as budget row rumbles on for Reeves

The prime minister is keen to change the conversation after the Tories called his chancellor’s ethics into question

The political fates of Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are intertwined. Allies say that if one goes, the other is likely to follow.

This is why, in the wake of the budget, the Conservatives have attempted to focus their response on the chancellor’s personal ethics, accusing Reeves of lying about the rationale behind her record-breaking tax rises.