within the Labor budget revolt that could define the Starmer-Reeves project

As difficult as it is to describe the frenzy that gripped Whitehall on Wednesday evening, as officials and ministers began to realize the potential economic pain that could be inflicted on their departments in just a few days, it has not deterred some involved to try it. . "A shambles," was the assessment of one Labor figure. Another chose 'chaos'. A third was even bolder: 'Carnage'.

For a few incendiary hours that evening, angry and disbelieving messages flew through Westminster as ministerial teams responded to demands from the Treasury - namely to find significant savings in their departments by the ...