Healey should ‘stay the course’ and repair UK finances, says top IMF economist

Fund upgrades UK’s GDP growth forecast for 2026 to 1.3%, but says it is likely to ‘edge down’ next year

• IMF warns global economy ‘could soon test the limits of resilience’

John Healey should “stay the course” and continue repairing the UK’s public finances, the International Monetary Fund’s top economist has said, after the fund lifted its growth forecast for Britain.

Little more than a fortnight before Healey’s first budget, Silvana Tenreyro, the IMF’s economic counsellor, said the UK “stands out” among G7 countries in having a plan to narrow its deficit.