Rachel Reeves is stuck. At the Budget in November, she will almost certainly have to raise billions of pounds in taxes unless she is prepared to cut government spending, or risk the wrath of the bond markets by increasing borrowing.

The hefty tax rises the Chancellor brought in last year have been a drag on economic growth , with unemployment and inflation on the rise.

Reeves says she has made tricky decisions and deployed the resources of the state to boost the economy for the long term, for example by ramping up investment in infrastructure.

This is true, and it is important. But Labour’s collapse in the opinion polls shows that it is not enough. Voters feel that the Government is not doing enough to improve their quality of life and ease the squeeze that so many have experienc

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