Ailbhe Rea

London

Associate Editor, Bloomberg UK at Bloomberg News

Associate Editor, Bloomberg UK. Covering politics in Westminster.

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Articles

Rachel Reeves' Lengthening Shopping List: Ailbhe Rea

3 days ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

The list of things that Rachel Reeves will have to scramble to fund in this autumn’s budget has been getting longer in recent weeks:Now Reeves may have to make a rather expensive tweak to the above, as well as adding another possible line item to the list. NATO is pushing its members to agree this week to boost defense spending even higher — to 3.5% of GDP by 2032 — and failing to back the new target would damage Britain’s efforts to present itself as the alliance’s leading European power.
Starmer Takes on Farage, Reeves Takes on Pensions: Ailbhe Rea

1 week ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

We crossed a Rubicon today, in more ways than one. Keir Starmer said for the first time that British politics is now a straight fight between his Labour and Nigel Farage’s Reform, while Rachel Reeves has confirmed she will force large pension funds to back British assets if they do not do so voluntarily. Let’s take them each in turn.
Starmer and Top Aide Clash Over £2.5 Billion Benefit Cap

2 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

Children walk home school in Altrincham, United Kingdom. (Bloomberg) -- Keir Starmer is at odds with his powerful chief of staff over whether to scrap a two-child cap on benefits, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, a costly policy move that the British prime minister is under pressure to make after bruising local election results.
Starmer U-Turns on Signature Benefit Cut That Backfired

2 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Lucy White |Philip Aldrick |Ailbhe Rea

Keir Starmer(Bloomberg) -- Britain’s Labour government will make its sharpest U-turn since returning to power by limiting cuts to pensioners’ subsidies, as it puts the electoral threat posed by Nigel Farage ahead of lingering concern about the public finances.
Ailbhe Rea: Reeves Hints At a Winter Fuel U-Turn

2 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

Sometimes, in the peculiar world of Westminster, we know that a major decision has been taken not through any grand announcement or leak, but simply through a slight shift in tone, or what a politician stops saying. At the risk of being proven wrong in months to come, I’m willing to say it looks like that has happened today.
Reeves Hints at U-Turn on Winter Fuel Cuts for Pensioners

2 weeks ago | financialpost.com | Ailbhe Rea

Article content(Bloomberg) — Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves hinted she could change course on cuts to energy subsidies for millions of British pensioners, following newspaper reports of a government U-turn on the divisive policy. Sign In or Create an AccountArticle contentWe apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser, ortap here to see other videos from our team.
Reeves Hints at U-Turn on Winter Fuel Cuts for Pensioners

2 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

Rachel Reeves(Bloomberg) -- Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves hinted she could change course on cuts to energy subsidies for millions of British pensioners, following newspaper reports of a government U-turn on the divisive policy. After returning to government last summer, Labour’s first major fiscal announcement was a restriction on winter fuel allowance to pensioners who receive certain other state entitlements.
Reeves Faces Fresh Calls for Tax Rises: Ailbhe Rea

3 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

In February 2023, Keir Starmer, then opposition leader and riding high in the polls, delivered a speech to define the central purpose of the “mission-led government” he hoped to lead. Its number one mission, he said, would be “to deliver the highest sustained growth in the G-7.”You may well have forgotten the G-7 beating part of that promise, since Starmer and Rachel Reeves have pretty much stopped talking about it.
Farage Praise for Starmer Shows Labour Unease Over Immigration

3 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea

Nigel Farage(Bloomberg) -- Keir Starmer received praise from an unlikely source in the House of Commons on Wednesday, when the populist Nigel Farage approved of a speech the Labour prime minister gave two days earlier announcing a crackdown on immigration. “We at Reform very much enjoyed your speech on Monday,” Farage said at the weekly session of Prime Minister’s Questions, referring to the right-wing party he leads.
UK Eyes 15% Foreign State Cap on Newspapers Amid Telegraph Sale

3 weeks ago | bloomberg.com | Ailbhe Rea |Jamie Nimmo

Front pages of the Daily Telegraph newspaper. (Bloomberg) -- The UK plans to allow foreign states to own up to 15% of key British newspapers, according to a person familiar with the matter, a move that could clear the path for a sale of the Telegraph. The government could announce the cap — which has been under consultation for several months — as soon as Thursday, the person said on condition of anonymity. Sky News earlier reported the new threshold.