Budget 2026 LIVE: Chancellor John Healey's spending plans and what they mean for Scotland

Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey | PA

John Healey has set out his first Budget as Chancellor with a bid to provide “breathing space” for the public amid a difficult domestic economic situation made worse by the turmoil of the Iran war.

Mr Healey said the UK was being battered by a global economic storm, with the Budget watchdog slashing its forecast for gross domestic product growth next year.

The public finances have also taken a battering, with the cost of borrowing soaring and the UK spending £14 billion more on debt interest this year, the Chancellor said.

He told MPs: “Those are the storms we face. We can’t wish them away. We must choose the course we steer through them.”