Warm welcome Washington visit gives the chancellor a boost ahead of budget

Speaking in Washington on Tuesday, the chief economist of the International Monetary Fund suggested he was relaxed about higher debt levels to fund public investment.

- Phillip Inman

He made the comment in answer to a question about the UK at the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank, but it felt like a highly choreographed piece of theatre.

Rachel Reeves was due to arrive at the meetings in the US capital shortly afterwards and the IMF was aware that the chancellor was going to announce a significant overhaul of Britain's budget rules to allow more investment by the state.

In one session after another, IMF senior officials repeated the same message - the Washington-based organisation was a great believer in the power of public investment to drive growth.

There was also a sizeable upgrade to Britain's growth rate this year, giving the sense of an economy bouncing back after some difficult years.

It seemed like a landing strip was being prepared for Reeves in Washington to explain how her plans would further boost growth and improve living standards.

A backdrop of a balmy US capital bathed in autumnal sunshine, provided an opportunity for the chancellor to relax away from Westminster after a difficult first 100 days of a Labour government and with less than a week to go before she presents her first budget.

Reeves said there would be new rules in her budget on Wednesday governing Treasury borrowing, allowing debt levels to increase - experts say by up to £50bn - to facilitate investment in Britain's crumbling infrastructure.