Liz Truss and her cabinet did not discuss the Bank of England’s latest attempts to prevent a full-blown economic crisis when they met this morning.
The prime minister’s official spokesman - who is now banned from attending the weekly gatherings in 10 Downing Street - said they instead discussed the growth plan unveiled by Kwasi Kwarteng in last month’s mini-budget.
The Bank of England announced this morning that it was making a second emergency intervention in the gilt market to ensure the UK’s “financial stability”.
It followed the Bank’s announcement nearly two weeks ago that it was making £65 billion available to help prop up the pensions industry.
Both interventions came in the wake of the economic chaos sparked by the chancellor’s plans for £45 billion of unfunded tax cuts.
Asked if the extraordinary developments had been discussed at cabinet, the PM’s spokesman said: “They talked about the growth plan and the importance of that.”
He said the Bank of England’s actions were “in line with its financial stability objective and we are in regular contact with the Bank, who will closely monitor the markets in the coming days”.
The spokesman added: “The prime minister is committed to the growth measures set out by the chancellor.
“The prime minister remains confident that the measures set out will deliver growth for the UK economy. What that means is more money coming in for the government to spend on the public’s priorities - things like the NHS and putting an end to the longstanding position of a broadly stagnating economy.”
The spokesman said that despite the growing economic uncertainty, the government believes “the fundamentals of the UK economy remain strong”.
Meanwhile, the spokesman also confirmed that cabinet did not discuss whether or not benefits should rise with average earnings or the higher rate of inflation.
Truss is facing a fresh Tory rebellion over the issue, with ministers including Penny Mordaunt and Robert Buckland among those urging the PM not to cut benefits in real terms.
