Reeves tells the Tories: Get real

We have to act fast to get economy firing, she insists

- LIZZY BUCHAN

RACHEL Reeves came out fighting yesterday as she vowed to go "further and faster" in order to get Britain's economy firing.

The Chancellor shrugged off Tory calls for her resignation and told critics to "get real" over a volatile pound and the rising cost of government borrowing.

Ms Reeves insisted she would not duck the challenges created by global uncertainty, adding: "The economic headwinds that we face are a reminder that we should, indeed we must, go further and faster in our plan to kickstart economic growth."

Shadow Chancellor Mel Stride claimed Ms Reeves was part of a "Shakespearean tragedy".

He added: "To go or not to go, that is now a question."

But cheered on by Labour MPs, Ms Reeves dismissed his attacks as not serious and said his party was out of ideas on how to fix the mess they made of the economy.

STRATEGY

The Chancellor had been criticised over her trip to China for trade talks which could be worth £600million over five years.

Attacking Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, she said: "You can see what happens when the Leader of the Opposition tells the Shadow Cabinet they shouldn't have any policies.

"As far as I can tell, the Conservative party's economic strategy is to say that the UK should not engage with the second largest economy in the world, or indeed within our nearest neighbours and our biggest trading partners in the European Union.