london  the uk government unveiled the largest tax increases and spending cuts in a decade thursday becoming the first major western economy to start sharply limiting its spending growth after years of rampedup fiscal stimulus during the pandemic and recent energy subsidies the measures mark a second major shift in uk economic policy in just a matter of months after previous british prime minister liz truss spooked financial markets by pledging to jumpstart growth with tax cuts funded by more borrowing her successor rishi sunak is now taking economic policy in the other direction trying to convince investors the uk is serious about eventually taming rising government debt his challenge will be to regain market confidence without causing major damage to an economy widely expected to enter a recession chancellor jeremy hunt announced gbp55 billion 6553 billion of spending cuts and tax increases over the next five years an attempt to begin lowering the size of government debt relative to the economy from the fiscal year ending march 2028 among the measures mr hunt said he would raise taxes by freezing the thresholds at which people pay higher rates pulling thousands of people into the top band of tax as their pay is boosted by wage rises and inflation the government will also reduce an energy subsidy to households next spring it is also increasing a windfall tax on energy company profits because of our plans the recession is shallower and inflation is reduced mr hunt told the uk parliament in presenting the plan but it means taking difficult decisions he added write to max colchester at maxcolchesterwsjcom and paul hannon at paulhannonwsjcom