Healey avoids bond market backlash with ‘placeholder Budget’

John Healey has managed to avoid punishment at the hands of the bond market through a “placeholder Budget” that delayed big decisions on defence and welfare and left questions hanging over the government s future spending plans. The Chancellor announced a raft of cost of living measures as part of his fiscal statement, funded by taxes on banks, savers and landlords. Andrew Wishart, senior UK economist at Berenberg, said it was a “placeholder Budget… that respected the constraints of borrowing limits and Labour’s 2024 manifesto promises. “In the meantime, subsidies funded by general taxation remain the sticking plaster.” Healey chose not to implement any sweeping tax rises or spending cuts in a Budget that would narrow the governments’ fiscal headroom to £15bn. The bond market shrugged off the Chancellor’s speech with 10-year gilt yields, a key metric showing the government’s borrowing costs, falling a modest two basis points. The 30-year gilt yield was down six basis po