Labour has ruled out a “return” to the austerity seen in the 2010s, and still felt long after. However, critics inside the party continue to accuse Ms Reeves of just that, arguing that her rhetoric and policies bear an all-too-similar resemblance.

Rachel Reeves has promised Britain’s “best days lie ahead” as she sought to strike a more optimistic tone in her first speech to the Labour Party conference as chancellor. Reeves has been accused of talking the economy down by warning of “tough choices” to deal with what she says is a worse-than-expected inheritance from the Conservatives.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves promised to deliver a UK budget showing “real ambition” next month as she used her speech at the Labour Party’s annual conference to project a positive vision for the country.

By Alistair Smout, Andrew MacAskill and Elizabeth Piper LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) -British finance minister Rachel Reeves ruled out a return to economic austerity on Monday, trying to brighten the gloomy tone her party had adopted since its landslide election victory in July.

But the chancellor's conference speech on Monday risks being overshadowed by the row over her decision to axe winter fuel payments.