LONDON - British finance minister Sajid Javid will deliver the government's first post-Brexit budget on March 11, promising more investment to help voters who gave Prime Minister Boris Johnson a sweeping election win last month.
"People across the country have told us that they want change. We've listened and will now deliver," Javid said in a statement on Tuesday , promising"a decade of renewal" and a levelling up of opportunity around the country. The finance ministry said Javid would use low borrowing costs to boost investment, helping the Conservatives meet its campaign promises of up to 20 billion pounds a year in extra investment in road, rail and other infrastructure.Britain has some room for manoeuvre on spending having slashed the budget deficit from 10 per cent of gross domestic product in 2010 to about 2 per cent now.
However, he has committed not to borrow over the long term to fund this so-called current spending which will fall far short of a full reversal of past cuts, despite Johnson offering the prospect of an end to austerity.