Image: BBCThe government has scrapped its plans to deliver a long-term Spending Review as uncertainty surrounding the economy continue.
It had hoped that the Chancellor Rishi Sunak would outline the government's spending plans for the remaining years of this Parliament. Instead, he will set out a one-year review towards the end of November.
The Treasury said it was not the right time to focus on the years to come, explaining the one-year review will "focus entirely" on responding to the Covid crisis and protecting jobs.
Many economists have warned that setting out longer-term spending plans would be difficult given so much turmoil in the economy.
Announcing that the long-term Spending Review would not go ahead, the Chancellor said: "In the current environment it's essential that we provide certainty.
"So we'll be doing that for departments and all of the nations of the United Kingdom by setting budgets for next year, with a total focus on tackling Covid and delivering our Plan for Jobs.
"Long-term investment in our country's future is the right thing to do, especially in areas which are the cornerstone of our society, like the NHS, schools and infrastructure."
Mr Sunak will also update MPs on the state of the economy in the House of Commons today (Thursday). According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the economy was still 9.2% smaller in August than it was before the pandemic in February, despite showing some signs of recovery in the latter months of summer.
In September, net government borrowing hit £36.1 billion, the third-highest figure since records began.
