The Chancellor was seen visibly in tears and looking “miserable” in the House of Commons on Wednesday during Prime Minister’s Questions as Sir Keir Starmer refused to guarantee Rachel Reeves will keep her job.
Starmer was facing MPs after yet another U-turn as he was forced to scrap parts of his welfare reforms which has left nearly a £5 billion black hols in Reeves spending plans which has triggered fears there will be even more tax rises in the Autumn Budget.
The Tory leader said Starmer is “too weak to get anything done” as the Prime Minister cannot control his MPs amid the welfare reform rebellion which sparked a “humiliating U-turn,” she added.
The Tory leader continues, “He said that he would take the difficult decisions – but isn’t the reality that he is too weak to get anything done,” to which Starmer then blamed the Conservatives for trashing the economy.
The Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said during PMQs that Reeves looks “absolutely miserable” and she asked Starmer if the Chancellor will still in her job at the next election, she added the “Chancellor is toast.”
She added, “She is a human shield for his [Starmer’s] incompetence.”
A tear just rolled down the Chancellor’s cheek at #PMQs as the PM refuses to answer whether or not she’ll stay in her job.
Hayfever, or something else? pic.twitter.com/HPXXQlDNo9
— Paul Brand (@PaulBrandITV) July 2, 2025
The Prime Minister did not answer the question and said that Badenoch “certainly won’t” be in her position come the next election.
The Prime Minister said, “She [Reeves] knows that no Prime Minister or chancellor ever stands at the despatch box and writes budgets in the future.
“But she talks about growth, for 14 years we had stagnation, and that is what caused the problem.”
Badenoch said with a smile, “How awful for the Chancellor that he couldn’t confirm that she would stay in place.”
Badenoch asked Starmer if he will rule out tax rises in the Autumn Budget amid the changes to the welfare bill, he refused to rule this out.
The Chancellor’s spokesperson said her demeanour is related to a “personal issue.”
The spokesperson added, “It’s a personal matter, which – as you would expect – we are not going to get into. The chancellor will be working out of Downing Street this afternoon.”
