What time is the Spending Review? Rachel Reeves set for huge announcement

Rachel Reeves is set for a huge announcement on Wednesday as she unveils the Government’s Spending Review in the House of Commons. The Chancellor will outline how much different departments will receive over the next few years, and it’s expected to include major decisions on NHS funding, policing, and schools.

Ms Reeves will speak after Prime Minister’s Questions, followed by the publishing of the full document on the Government’s website shortly after. She’s expected to confirm day-to-day spending plans until 2028-29 and investment spending through to 2029-30. Spending reviews are used by the Government to set out long-term financial plans. According to the House of Commons Library, they cover around 40% of all public spending.

This will be the first multi-year review under Labour and comes after weeks of negotiations between government departments and the Treasury.

Ms Reeves has already warned that “not every department will get everything that they want,” saying she’s had to “say no” to requests she might normally support.

Wednesday's spending review is expected to start at 12:30pm.

The review is being carried out from scratch, using what’s known as a “zero-based” approach.

That means each area of spending is being assessed line by line, rather than applying an overall increase or cut.

Some decisions have already been announced ahead of the full review. Last week, the Chancellor confirmed £15.6 billion for regional transport, and on Tuesday, the Treasury said that nine million pensioners will now receive winter fuel payments this winter, marking a major winter fuel U-turn.

The Government is expected to focus spending on health, security, and the economy, The Telegraph reported.

That could mean extra money for the NHS, defence, and infrastructure. It has also been reported that Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has made a last-minute push for more police funding.

Schools are expected to benefit from a £4.5 billion uplift, while there’s speculation the two-child benefit cap could be scrapped, though that has not yet been confirmed.

However, there is pressure on the Treasury to stay within strict borrowing limits.

Ms Reeves has promised to stick to the Government’s fiscal rules, which restrict how much it can borrow.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has said the UK economy is losing momentum and warned Ms Reeves that borrowing needs to be brought down.

This has raised concerns that some departments could face real-terms cuts.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said that unless more money is found, “sharp trade-offs” will be needed to meet Labour’s goals.

There won’t be any tax changes in this review. Any new tax plans would need separate legislation and would likely be saved for the Budget in the autumn.

However, economists have warned that more tax may be needed in future if growth remains slow.

One option could be to freeze income tax thresholds further - a move that would bring in billions without technically raising tax rates.