The position of Rachel Reeves, Britain’s most senior finance official, was the subject of growing speculation on Wednesday after she broke into tears in Parliament.

“The rapidity of the move shows the precariousness of the UK’s debt situation. The government had planned a series of cuts to welfare and sickness benefits, but had to drastically scale them back in the face of huge opposition from backbench MPs. The watered-down changes are estimated to deliver no savings.”