Britain’s new finance chief rules out emergency budget

Britain’s new finance minister Philip Hammond on Thursday ruled out an emergency budget in response to economic turbulence triggered by the country’s vote in favour of exiting the European Union.

Hammond told media that a budget would be submitted towards the end of the year, as planned by his predecessor George Osborne following a U-turn. Ahead of last month’s referendum on Britain’s EU membership, Osborne had suggested that an emergency budget would be required in the event of a Brexit vote. However, he quickly ruled out such an event despite the country voting to quit the bloc.

Britain’s new Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday appointed Hammond to replace Osborne as chancellor of the exchequer. Osborne was the architect of the past six years of British austerity and a close friend of former prime minister David Cameron, while both had campaigned for Britain to remain in the EU. Hammond told various media outlets on Thursday that there would be no emergency budget. “The (new) prime minister made clear we will do an Autumn Statement (budget) in the usual way, in the autumn, and we will look carefully over the summer at the situation,” Hammond told Sky News. Hammond added that he was meeting on Thursday with Bank of England governor Mark Carney to assess Britain’s economic situation.