Kwarteng must find £60bn of public spending cuts to bring finances under control, IFS says

Kwasi Kwarteng will have to find spending cuts of more than £60 billion if he is to meet to get public finances back under control, a leading economic think tank has warned.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said it is not possible to deliver cuts on that scale through efficiency savings and “trimming the fat”, and that it will require major cuts to public services.

Analysts also said failure to come up with a credible plan that convinces the markets the government is committed to reducing its debt could result in the worst crisis in decades.

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