Mr Osborne could u
nveil where £12bn in welfare cuts, which the Tories have said they will make over the next five years as part of their quest to run an absolute budget surplus, will fall. Only £2bn of this total has so far been specified.
The Chancellor’s summer Budget is also expected to include measures to make economies in Whitehall and to crack down on tax avoidance.
But the main fiscal event of the year is likely to be the next departmental Spending Review, at which the Chancellor will unveil where an estimated £30bn of cuts will be found across Whitehall. The existing spending-review period only extends to next March, which means a new programme must be in place by the end of the year.
