The Chancellor, John Healey, says Britain cannot stop the shocks that hit it but can be made better able to withstand them. The line comes from his eve-of-Budget statement, as reported by AFP.
"We can't stop these shocks that hit Britain, but we can make Britain more resilient when they do."
AFP describes the rising inflation and borrowing costs facing the Chancellor as "largely a consequence of the US-Iran war". It expects a "small-scale" Budget, with measures to cut "pointless paperwork" for business.
AFP also reports that Labour has ruled out rises to income tax and capital gains tax. It says analysts see this raising the prospect of spending cuts to balance the books.
According to AFP, Healey is expected to delay until next year the detail of how Britain will meet the NATO target of spending 3.5% of GDP on defence by 2035.