Politics LIVE: Reform UK challenges Rachel Reeves to make foreigners 'bear the brunt' of £25bn black hole

WATCH: Richard Tice jokes Shabana Mahmood 'putting in application to join Reform' over asylum system plans

|

GB NEWS

Dan McDonald

By Dan McDonald


Published: 18/11/2025

- 05:30

Updated: 18/11/2025

- 06:15
Dan McDonald

By Dan McDonald


Published: 18/11/2025

- 05:30

Updated: 18/11/2025

- 06:15

Stay up-to-date with all the latest political coverage from GB News below

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is set to call for foreign nationals to "bear the brunt" of Rachel Reeves's £25billion "black hole".

Mr Farage is expected to unveil plains to prohibit EU citizens from claiming benefits in Britain, slashing foreign aid spending by 70 per cent and doubling NHS surcharge costs.


Europeans will be handed a three-month notice period before their payments end entirely - and if Brussels refuses, a trade war could follow.

Reform's head of policy Zia Yusuf is set to announce proposals to cut Government spending by £25billion - which the party says will eradicate the need to raise any taxes.

Mr Yusuf said: “Labour has a choice. They can either go ahead and raise taxes on British citizens or they can enact our proposals which put British people first and ask foreign nationals to bear the brunt of the black hole, not British citizens.

“Most British people would consider it outrageous to expect British people to pay higher taxes or see their services cut whilst their money is being spent this way.”

All foreigners would see their yearly NHS surcharge hiked from £1,035 to £2,718, raising £5billion each year.

Mr Farage will argue that figure is fair because it represents the NHS's cost per person in England - while Mr Yusuf will brand it a "great value" deal.

"Why should a foreign national get a 65 per cent discounts? It's great value, somebody can pay more and get vastly more out of the NHS," the party's policy chief will say.

And turning his crosshairs overseas, Mr Yusuf is expected to reveal plans to take a chainsaw to foreign aid - taking it down from this year's £13.6billion to £1billion.

FOLLOW BELOW FOR LIVE UPDATES THROUGHOUT THE DAY…

Kemi Badenoch: Rachel Reeves will drop a 'stealth tax bombshell' on millions in Budget

Rachel Reeves

The Chancellor is fending off attacks from the Conservatives and Reform this morning

|
PA

As well as Reform UK, the Chancellor is fending off attacks from the Conservatives this morning.

Kemi Badenoch will today warn that Rachel Reeves is set to drop a "stealth tax bombshell" on millions of Britons at her "nightmare before Christmas" Budget in eight days' time.

The Tory boss will use a press conference today to launch a fierce attack on the Chancellor's anticipated Budget measures - with some analysts predicting an extension to the existing freeze on tax thresholds.

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

As Reform UK plots raid on Britain's ballooning aid budget... Yvette Cooper demands Gaza SPLURGE

Shortly after Reform UK's plans to slash foreign aid and make foreigners "bear the brunt" of the "black hole" were made public, Yvette Cooper demanded that Gaza be "flooded" with tax-funded donations, food and more.

Ms Cooper has called for a major increase in aid for the strip of land after the UK backed a UN Security Council resolution to implement Donald Trump's peace plan there.

She said the resolution "emphasises the importance of increased humanitarian aid that is still desperately needed in Gaza".

"We must now have urgent action to open all the crossings, lift restrictions and flood Gaza with aid. And we must keep up progress for a two-state solution with peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians side by side," she said.

Keir Starmer: 'I WILL lead Labour into next General Election'

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed he will lead Labour into the next General Election - despite last week's alleged leadership challenges and his plummeting personal approval ratings.

The embattled Prime Minister told The Mirror on Monday that "every minute that's not spent talking about and dealing with the cost of living is a minute wasted of the political work of this Government".

He added: "That's my response to last week. I remain utterly focused on what matters to me most, which is bearing down on the cost of living and making people feel better off.

"I'm very conscious of the fact that people want to get on in life, they want to progress, they want more money in their pocket to do the things that matter to them."

RECAP: Shabana Mahmood refuses to say whether her asylum overhaul will slash number of illegal migrants making way into Britain

Shabana Mahmood and Chris Hope

Shabana Mahmood refused to say that the number of illegal migrants will drop

|

POOL

Shabana Mahmood refused to say that her new asylum crackdown would cause a drop in numbers of illegal migrants entering Britain as she faced a grilling from GB News' Political Editor Christopher Hope.

Pressed repeatedly on whether her sweeping asylum reforms would cut small boat crossings, the Home Secretary declined to make any firm commitment, but insisted she “wants to see them fall”.

Ms Mahmood said: “I want to implement these reforms as quickly as possible… judge me on delivery. I want to get those boat crossings down, but I’m not going to set arbitrary targets.”

Chopper told her GB News viewers will be “frustrated” by her refusal to say the numbers will drop, saying she could only “hope they will".

READ THE FULL STORY HERE

More From GB News