Reader Q&A: Our money and economics correspondents answer your Budget 2026 questions

Key events15m agoWelcome to the conversationWelcome to the conversationJohn Healey holding the iconic red box outside the 11 Downing Street in London. Photograph: Krisztián Elek/SOPA Images/ShutterstockYesterday Chancellor John Healey gave his maiden budget under Andy Burnham’s leadership, announcing measures to cut energy bills funded by a windfall tax on banks. He characterised his plan as “a budget built on fiscal discipline” fit to face “global economic storms” that are driving up up energy prices.Does Healey’s budget represent a break with the past, or is the lower-than-expected tax on banks just another example of tinkering around the edges by another Chancellor fenced in by self-imposed fiscal rules?Hilary Osborne, the Guardian’s money and consumer editor will be joining economics editor Heather Stewart from 3pm (GMT) today to answer your questions on the outlook for our economy.Sign up or sign in to join the discussion. Post your questions in the comments below.