Reeves’ Budget Relies on British Consumers Splashing Their Cash

Around a decade ago the Bank of England was infamously described as the UK economy’s “unreliable boyfriend.” Now that role has fallen to the British consumer, just as Rachel Reeves counts on a resurgence in spending to make her numbers stack up.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s budget, delivered on Nov. 26, depends on higher tax revenues from workers and families in the coming years. Yet if earnings and spending don’t hold up, she risks a £40 billion ($53 billion) hole in the public finances.

Brits have been notably parsimonious since the pandemic, choosing to save more of their ...