What’s the secret to fixing the UK’s public finances? Here’s what our panel of experts would do

By Steve Schifferes, Honorary Research Fellow, City Political Economy Research Centre, City St George's, University of London
Conor O'Kane, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Bournemouth University
Guilherme Klein Martins, Lecturer in Economics, University of Leeds
Jonquil Lowe, Senior Lecturer in Economics and Personal Finance, The Open University
Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, School of Social and Political Sciences, University of Glasgow

Unexpected growth in the UK economy isn’t enough to detract from the gaping hole in the country’s public finances. Speculation is ramping up about what steps the chancellor of the exchequer, Rachel Reeves, might take to plug the gap come the budget in autumn – and there are no shortage of ideas. The trouble is, each comes with risks and unknowns. Our experts have weighed up the evidence to offer their suggestions.

Bite the bullet – raise income tax

Maha Rafi Atal, Adam Smith Senior Lecturer in Political Economy, University of Glasgow

Rachel…

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