Mark Carney has tipped Rachel Reeves to become the next chancellor as he gave his backing to the Labour Party at the conference in Liverpool.
The former governor of the Bank of England, who has been critical of Brexit and Liz Truss in the past, said Labour’s shadow chancellor is a “serious economist” and understands “the big picture” and “the economics of work”.
“It is beyond time we put her energy and ideas into action,” he said in what amounts to a serious coup for Reeves and Keir Starmer.
His comments came after Reeves addressed a jam-packed hall at Labour’s annual conference, warning Britain to “never trust the Tories with our economy ever again”.
In a stinging attack, she asked those gathered: “Is there anything in Britain that works better than when the Conservatives came into office thirteen years ago?”
Her speech was followed by a video message from Carney.
He said: “Rachel Reeves is a serious economist. She began her career at the Bank of England, so she understands the big picture. But, crucially she understands the economics of work, of place and family. And, look, it is beyond time we put her energy and ideas into action.”
A spokesman for Ms Reeves said the endorsement sends “a very clear signal” that Labour is ready to fight the Conservatives on the economy.
Related: Labour ‘ready to rebuild Britain’ after Tory chaos, says Reeves
