<p>British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt may stand down as Member of the Parliament (MP) before the next elections, reported The Guardian citing senior members of the Conservative Party. Hunt has been selected for the new constituency of Godalming and Ash after his Surrey seat was dissolved and split in accordance with boundary changes.</p>

<p>According to his spokesperson on Friday, Hunt maintains that he would stand. However, byelection defeats are mounting for Conservative Party. Labour Party's poll leads are solidifying. The Observer has said citing senior local and national sources that it is expected that Hunt would step down much nearer to the polls.</p>

<p>Guardian quoted an unnamed former minister who said that with the possibility of Labour Party forming a government, prospects for Hunt were not attractive.</p>

<p>“Barring a miracle [of the Tories winning and forming another government], I can’t see Jeremy wanting to be in opposition under a new leader. And if he loses, he will be the biggest scalp on election night. That is not a departure anyone would want. People in Surrey are saying he will not stand,” the former minister said.</p>

<p>In case Hunt stands down, it would throw up a question about whether he can remain chancellor as elections approach.</p>

<p>Before entering politics, Hunt was a successful businessman. He would expect an elevation to the House of Lords if he leaves the Commons. This would allow him to retain a political role along with his commercial interests.</p>

<p>“Of course Jeremy cannot say so now, but I think he won’t stand. It is not uncommon to pull out having said you will stand, citing changes of circumstances. Short of turning things round and winning, and him remaining chancellor, which is not exactly likely, there is nothing in it for him,” said another former minister from the Conservative Party as quoted by The Guardian.</p>

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British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt may stand down as Member of the Parliament (MP) before the next elections, reported The Guardian citing senior members of the Conservative Party.

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt may stand down as Member of the Parliament (MP) before the next elections, reported The Guardian citing senior members of the Conservative Party. Hunt has been selected for the new constituency of Godalming and Ash after his Surrey seat was dissolved and split in accordance with boundary changes. According to his spokesperson on Friday, Hunt maintains that he would stand. However, byelection defeats are mounting for Conservative Party. Labour Party's poll leads are solidifying. The Observer has said citing senior local and national sources that it is expected that Hunt would step down much nearer to the polls. Guardian quoted an unnamed former minister who said that with the possibility of Labour Party forming a government, prospects for Hunt were not attractive. “Barring a miracle [of the Tories winning and forming another government], I can’t see Jeremy wanting to be in opposition under a new leader. And if he loses, he will be the biggest scalp on election night. That is not a departure anyone would want. People in Surrey are saying he will not stand,” the former minister said. In case Hunt stands down, it would throw up a question about whether he can remain chancellor as elections approach. Before entering politics, Hunt was a successful businessman. He would expect an elevation to the House of Lords if he leaves the Commons. This would allow him to retain a political role along with his commercial interests. “Of course Jeremy cannot say so now, but I think he won’t stand. It is not uncommon to pull out having said you will stand, citing changes of circumstances. Short of turning things round and winning, and him remaining chancellor, which is not exactly likely, there is nothing in it for him,” said another former minister from the Conservative Party as quoted by The Guardian. You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. WATCH WION LIVE HERE ×

UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt may step down as MP before election: Report

<p>British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, on Sunday (September 3) vowed to “spend what it takes” to deal with the crumbling school buildings and said that the United Kingdom government will move to fix the unsafe infrastructure quickly. This comes days after more than 100 schools across England were forced to shut down over safety concerns as they were found to be made with a certain type of concrete that is prone to collapse.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>‘Extremely quickly’</strong></h2>

<p>In interviews with the British media, on Sunday morning, Hunt said that the majority of the 104 affected schools will be able to operate largely normally. “We will spend what it takes to sort out this problem as quickly as possible,” the British finance minister told BBC.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Last week, the UK government issued an order to around 104 schools or “settings” &nbsp;– out of the more than 20,000 schools in England – that require urgent action after they were said to have been made with <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/explained-over-100-schools-across-england-forced-to-shut-down-after-being-made-with-raac-concrete-heres-why-631297">Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete or RAAC </a>and found to be at risk of collapse.</p>

<p>The announcement has left the institutes scrambling to make arrangements to continue teaching and angered parents as the order was issued days before the start of the autumn term, as per British media reports.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Fear&nbsp;of asbestos amid RAAC crisis</strong></h2>

<p>During the interviews on Sunday, Hunt also admitted that the government is also in the midst of responding to the longstanding asbestos problem in schools that is believed to be present in some of the same buildings affected by the RAAC concrete. This could further complicate the matter.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“We have 22,000 schools in the country and there has been since that incident a huge programme going through this Raac/asbestos issue because we want to be absolutely sure that every child is safe,” Hunt told Sky News after being asked if parents could be confident their child would be safe.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>What is the concrete issue&nbsp;in UK about?</strong></h2>

<p>The UK government has also come under fire as they are yet to release the list of the schools affected while British Education Secretary Gillian Keegan previously said that the affected schools would contact parents directly and that “If you don’t hear, don’t worry.”&nbsp;</p>

<p>This has also prompted demands for transparency over the extent of the consequences of RAAC in public buildings over the weekend.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The RAAC is essentially a lightweight form of concrete which according to the UK government’s website was used to build roofs, schools, colleges and other buildings from the 1950s until the mid-1990s, but has since been found to be at risk of collapse.</p>

<p>It has also been described as “80 per cent air” and is said to have a lifespan of around 30 years. Shadow education secretary from the opposition Labour Party Bridget Phillipson took to X (formerly Twitter) and said, “The government has spent the summer sitting on its hands as the concrete crumbles in our schools.”<br />
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British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, on Sunday (September 3) vowed to “spend what it takes” to deal with the crumbling school buildings and said that the United Kingdom government will move to fix the unsafe infrastructure quickly.

British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt, on Sunday (September 3) vowed to “spend what it takes” to deal with the crumbling school buildings and said that the United Kingdom government will move to fix the unsafe infrastructure quickly. This comes days after more than 100 schools across England were forced to shut down over safety concerns as they were found to be made with a certain type of concrete that is prone to collapse. ‘Extremely quickly’ In interviews with the British media, on Sunday morning, Hunt said that the majority of the 104 affected schools will be able to operate largely normally. “We will spend what it takes to sort out this problem as quickly as possible,” the British finance minister told BBC. Last week, the UK government issued an order to around 104 schools or “settings” – out of the more than 20,000 schools in England – that require urgent action after they were said to have been made with Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete or RAAC and found to be at risk of collapse. The announcement has left the institutes scrambling to make arrangements to continue teaching and angered parents as the order was issued days before the start of the autumn term, as per British media reports. Fear of asbestos amid RAAC crisis During the interviews on Sunday, Hunt also admitted that the government is also in the midst of responding to the longstanding asbestos problem in schools that is believed to be present in some of the same buildings affected by the RAAC concrete. This could further complicate the matter. “We have 22,000 schools in the country and there has been since that incident a huge programme going through this Raac/asbestos issue because we want to be absolutely sure that every child is safe,” Hunt told Sky News after being asked if parents could be confident their child would be safe. What is the concrete issue in UK about? The UK government has also come under fire as they are yet to release the list of the schools affected while British Education Secretary Gillian Keegan previously said that the affected schools would contact parents directly and that “If you don’t hear, don’t worry.” This has also prompted demands for transparency over the extent of the consequences of RAAC in public buildings over the weekend. The RAAC is essentially a lightweight form of concrete which according to the UK government’s website was used to build roofs, schools, colleges and other buildings from the 1950s until the mid-1990s, but has since been found to be at risk of collapse. It has also been described as “80 per cent air” and is said to have a lifespan of around 30 years. Shadow education secretary from the opposition Labour Party Bridget Phillipson took to X (formerly Twitter) and said, “The government has spent the summer sitting on its hands as the concrete crumbles in our schools.” WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

RAAC concrete crisis: UK govt vows to ‘spend what it takes’ to deal with crumbling school buildings

<p><meta name="uuid" content="uuidwSU97jjHczle" /><meta charset="utf-8" />British Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has had a rough start to his new job. Now, it has come to light that Kwarteng met senior executives of Saudi Arabian oil firms in rather clandestine meetings when he was the business secretary, per a Guardian report.</p>

<p>The publication stated that Kwarteng met the chief executives of Saudi Aramco, Sabic and the chair of Alfanar Group, an industrial conglomerate in January, earlier this year when he visited KSA on a two-day trip.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The information was accessed using the Freedom of Information Act (FoI) which revealed that the meetings were undisclosed.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/proposed-uk-tax-cuts-caused-a-little-turbulence-says-finance-minister-kwasi-kwarteng-522165" target="_blank"><strong>Read more: Proposed UK tax cuts caused ‘a little turbulence’, says finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng</strong></a></p>

<p>The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in its originally published report had made no mention of Kwarteng's meetings with the Saudia Arabian oil executives.&nbsp;</p>

<p>According to the rules, meetings with foreign government figures is not required to be punched into the records but meetings or even chance encounters with business executives is required to be declared.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Minutes of the meeting acquired by the publication reveals a section titled “Aramco flight talk” wherein Kwarteng discussed the “history and opportunities for the company”.</p>

<p>However, other elements of the meeting discussed in the said 'Aramco flight' were redacted by the government, citing it could harm UK-Saudi relations.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/uk-will-need-66bn-spending-cuts-to-bounce-back-from-unfunded-tax-cuts-524482" target="_blank"><strong>Read more: UK ‘will need $66bn spending cuts’ to bounce back from unfunded tax cuts</strong></a></p>

<p>Notably, Saudi Aramco is the world’s biggest oil producer while Sabic is the world’s fourth-largest petrochemical company.</p>

<p>Experts say that meeting with top officials of such companies is expected to be lodged in the official records. However, the fact that it was omitted suggests that the minister was being lobbied when he was responsible for UK's energy policy.&nbsp;</p>

<p>While the UK government remained opaque on the meetings, Sabic in a Twitter post mentioned that the then UK business secretary indeed visited the company facility,&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">We were honored with the visit of Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Business Secretary, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and the accompanying delegation to United Company, where they were briefed about the world’s largest CO2 purification and liquefaction plant.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SABIC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SABIC</a> <a href="https://t.co/bL5PhwkLF1">pic.twitter.com/bL5PhwkLF1</a></p>
— SABIC I سابك (@SABIC) <a href="https://twitter.com/SABIC/status/1488416353069506567?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 1, 2022</a></blockquote>
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<p>The UK has been going through a harrowing energy crisis and the ordinary Britons are expected to receive inflated energy bills this winter. Thus, the secret meetings of Kwarteng which could have influenced the energy plans of the UK are being scrutinized microscopically.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As reported by WION, Kwarteng has had a troubled start to his new job. Within days of announcing his ambitious tax cut plans, he was forced to take a volta face on the 45 per cent tax cut for the top earners.</p>

<p>Additionally, he caught flak for celebrating with champagne after delivering the mini-budget. After the controversy snowballed, the UK finance minister said it 'wasn’t the best way to go'.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“I think it was a difficult call and I totally get how it looks. I just feel that it was something that I was signed up to do and I had to do…With hindsight it probably wasn’t the best way to go."</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/wasnt-the-best-way-to-go-kwarteng-admits-mistake-of-attending-champagne-reception-after-budget-522048" target="_blank"><strong>Read more: ‘Wasn’t the best way to go’: Kwarteng admits mistake of attending champagne reception after budget</strong></a></p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em><br />
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British Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has had a rough start to his new job. Now, it has come to light that Kwarteng met senior executives of Saudi Arabian oil firms in rather clandestine meetings when he was the business secretary, per a Guardian report.

British Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has had a rough start to his new job. Now, it has come to light that Kwarteng met senior executives of Saudi Arabian oil firms in rather clandestine meetings when he was the business secretary, per a Guardian report. The publication stated that Kwarteng met the chief executives of Saudi Aramco, Sabic and the chair of Alfanar Group, an industrial conglomerate in January, earlier this year when he visited KSA on a two-day trip. The information was accessed using the Freedom of Information Act (FoI) which revealed that the meetings were undisclosed. Read more: Proposed UK tax cuts caused ‘a little turbulence’, says finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in its originally published report had made no mention of Kwarteng's meetings with the Saudia Arabian oil executives. According to the rules, meetings with foreign government figures is not required to be punched into the records but meetings or even chance encounters with business executives is required to be declared. Minutes of the meeting acquired by the publication reveals a section titled “Aramco flight talk” wherein Kwarteng discussed the “history and opportunities for the company”. However, other elements of the meeting discussed in the said 'Aramco flight' were redacted by the government, citing it could harm UK-Saudi relations. Read more: UK ‘will need $66bn spending cuts’ to bounce back from unfunded tax cuts Notably, Saudi Aramco is the world’s biggest oil producer while Sabic is the world’s fourth-largest petrochemical company. Experts say that meeting with top officials of such companies is expected to be lodged in the official records. However, the fact that it was omitted suggests that the minister was being lobbied when he was responsible for UK's energy policy. While the UK government remained opaque on the meetings, Sabic in a Twitter post mentioned that the then UK business secretary indeed visited the company facility, We were honored with the visit of Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Business Secretary, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and the accompanying delegation to United Company, where they were briefed about the world’s largest CO2 purification and liquefaction plant.#SABIC pic.twitter.com/bL5PhwkLF1 — SABIC I سابك (@SABIC) February 1, 2022 × The UK has been going through a harrowing energy crisis and the ordinary Britons are expected to receive inflated energy bills this winter. Thus, the secret meetings of Kwarteng which could have influenced the energy plans of the UK are being scrutinized microscopically. As reported by WION, Kwarteng has had a troubled start to his new job. Within days of announcing his ambitious tax cut plans, he was forced to take a volta face on the 45 per cent tax cut for the top earners. Additionally, he caught flak for celebrating with champagne after delivering the mini-budget. After the controversy snowballed, the UK finance minister said it 'wasn’t the best way to go'. “I think it was a difficult call and I totally get how it looks. I just feel that it was something that I was signed up to do and I had to do…With hindsight it probably wasn’t the best way to go." Read more: ‘Wasn’t the best way to go’: Kwarteng admits mistake of attending champagne reception after budget (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

British Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng held clandestine meetings with Saudi oil executives: Report

<p><meta name="uuid" content="uuid2ZZ5ob2WjTxY" /><meta charset="utf-8" /></p>

<p>It has been barely a few weeks since the Liz Truss government took charge in the UK but looks like the wheels are already coming off. Currently, in a major economic crisis, the UK will need to cut as many as 200,000 government jobs in the next two years to avoid saddling the exchequer with billions in debt, per a report by Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).</p>

<p>The think tank said that the government will have to find a way to pay nearly $5.6 billion of savings to the workforce this year, accounting for the public sector wages that are set to increase by five per cent.&nbsp;</p>

<p>It added that over 100,00 job cuts will ensure that the wage bill remains unchanged, at least for this year. However, it added the caveat that if inflation continues to increase at the current pace, the UK government might have to go on another spree and slash the workforce by another 100,000.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Notably, during the pandemic, the public sector workforce of the UK grew by a quarter of a million to 5.5 million. Thus, the government is already looking to tone down the bureaucracy and cut nearly a fifth of the headcount which could essentially save $3.8 billion.&nbsp;</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/uk-economy-chancellor-kwasi-kwarteng-rolls-back-decision-on-tax-cuts-522183" target="_blank"><strong>WATCH | UK Economy: Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng rolls back decision on tax cuts</strong></a></p>

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<p>The IFS report comes in the backdrop of the UK government having been forced to abandon its plan to abolish the 45 per cent&nbsp;top rate of income tax. The humiliating u-turn was necessitated days after announcing the policy change and on the back of&nbsp;a turbulent reaction from the markets as well as the conservative party.</p>

<p>Such has been the economic downturn in the UK that according to the Bank of England, the pension funds which are managing vast sums on behalf of retired people in the country came close to a collapse after an “unprecedented” meltdown in the government bond market.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/report-uk-bank-says-pension-funds-nearly-collapsed-amid-unprecedented-market-meltdown-523441" target="_blank"><strong>Read more: Report: UK bank says pension funds nearly collapsed amid ‘unprecedented’ market meltdown</strong></a></p>

<p>The Bank of England stepped in late September to temporarily buy bonds after the British pound collapsed and reached its lowest ever in history against the dollar.</p>

<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em><br />
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It has been barely a few weeks since the Liz Truss government took charge in the UK but looks like the wheels are already coming off. Currently, in a major economic crisis, the UK will need to cut as many as 200,000 government jobs in the next two years to avoid saddling the exchequer with billions in debt, per a report by Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).

It has been barely a few weeks since the Liz Truss government took charge in the UK but looks like the wheels are already coming off. Currently, in a major economic crisis, the UK will need to cut as many as 200,000 government jobs in the next two years to avoid saddling the exchequer with billions in debt, per a report by Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). The think tank said that the government will have to find a way to pay nearly $5.6 billion of savings to the workforce this year, accounting for the public sector wages that are set to increase by five per cent. It added that over 100,00 job cuts will ensure that the wage bill remains unchanged, at least for this year. However, it added the caveat that if inflation continues to increase at the current pace, the UK government might have to go on another spree and slash the workforce by another 100,000. Notably, during the pandemic, the public sector workforce of the UK grew by a quarter of a million to 5.5 million. Thus, the government is already looking to tone down the bureaucracy and cut nearly a fifth of the headcount which could essentially save $3.8 billion. WATCH | UK Economy: Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng rolls back decision on tax cuts × The IFS report comes in the backdrop of the UK government having been forced to abandon its plan to abolish the 45 per cent top rate of income tax. The humiliating u-turn was necessitated days after announcing the policy change and on the back of a turbulent reaction from the markets as well as the conservative party. Such has been the economic downturn in the UK that according to the Bank of England, the pension funds which are managing vast sums on behalf of retired people in the country came close to a collapse after an “unprecedented” meltdown in the government bond market. Read more: Report: UK bank says pension funds nearly collapsed amid ‘unprecedented’ market meltdown The Bank of England stepped in late September to temporarily buy bonds after the British pound collapsed and reached its lowest ever in history against the dollar. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

Liz Truss government may have to cut 200,000 jobs to stay afloat: Report

The UK chancellor outlines the mini budget in the UK House of Commons, unveiling the budget that pledged to turn the cycle of economic stagnation into a cycle of growth.

UK chancellor presents anti-inflation budget in parliament

Britain's Finance Minister Rishi Sunak is facing a lot of criticism over his family's financial arrangements. Rishi Sunak has now asked PM Boris Johnson for a review of his declarations of interest he is urged to determine whether he stuck to the rules on ministerial declarations.

Tax arrangements of UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak's family under scrutiny

UK Finance Minister Rishi Sunak is now under pressure to reveal details of his private investments four days after his wife, Akshata Murthy was non-domiciled in Britain for tax purposes

UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak faces quiz on blind investment holdings

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