A sketch writers’ benefit? An April fool? Either way, big thanks to Mel and Kemi

A press conference at Tory HQ at least had some entertainment value even if there was nothing of importance to say

Millions of Britons brace for across-the-board bill rises in ‘awful April’

Ministers urged to act as energy, water, car tax, TV licences and a string of other increases squeeze households

‘It’s relentless’: Britons react to April bill rises amid Labour’s benefit cuts

Increases in council tax, energy and water come less than week after Rachel Reeves revealed raft of cuts to welfare

No 10 says it expects UK to be hit by new Trump tariffs as trade deal talks drag on

Downing Street says it ‘reserves right’ to respond to protect national interest when US levies are announced this week

Will bills continue to rise and what does it mean for Labour?

February’s dip in inflation was only a blip – the pain for consumers and the UK economy is poised to continue

Ministers brace for more Trump tariffs as UK races to agree US trade deal

Government fears hit from new US trade barriers but remains hopeful of progress in ongoing negotiations

From Lincoln to Nixon, Trump’s not the first US president to shock the UK on trade

Lincoln blockaded southern cotton, McKinley hit Britain with tariffs and Nixon abandoned the gold standard: a quick history of transatlantic economic meddling

Planning changes offer a bright spot for Rachel Reeves – but grey areas exist

OBR’s verdict of a long-term 0.4% boost to GDP from fewer building restrictions will have real political impact but there are gaps in funding

The storm-battered chancellor needs her nextdoor neighbour to be a steadfast friend

Even if the UK manages to dodge the worst of Donald Trump’s tariffs, we will still suffer from the fallout of a global trade war

Prosecution of people who help clients evade tax in UK falls by 75% in five years

Fewer than five criminal cases were brought against those who aid tax dodgers in 2023-24, down from 16 in 2018-19

Who is running Britain’s economy – Rachel Reeves or Donald Trump?

The chancellor’s careful calculations for her spring statement are likely to be blown out of the water by a looming US trade war

The poor don’t need Reeves’s austerity. And neither does Britain

With the economy stagnating, this is the very worst time to depress demand in order to be seen to ‘balance the books’

The Observer view on the spring statement: Rachel Reeves balanced the books – but at whose expense?

Here was a successful economic strategy in the making, marred by its abdication of responsibility to some of society’s weakest

From more tax to rewriting budget rules: six alternative ways Rachel Reeves could raise money

The chancellor has been slated by politicians, the public and campaigners for pushing ahead with brutal welfare cuts – but there were other options

UK ministers need to ask why they are offered freebies – and who loses out

Firms who wine and dine officials may gain a seat at the policymaking table while the third sector is squeezed out