Kwasi Kwarteng delivering his Budget on 23 SeptemberImage source, PA Media

After days of turmoil on the markets, a fall in the value of the pound and rises in the cost of UK government borrowing and mortgage rates, the government has defended its mini-budget.

Liz Truss was asked what she would say to first-time homebuyers who had had their mortgage offers withdrawn because of rising interest rates.

In the face of Putin's war in Ukraine, interest rates are rising.

The business secretary was asked on the Today programme why there had been a shock to investor confidence after the mini-budget.

The issue is more about interest rates than it is about fiscal policy.

What has been happening?

It is true that interest rates have been rising around the world as central banks try to control inflation, made worse by Russia's invasion ofUkraine and the energy price shock which followed.

The BoE decided to increase the UK's base rate by half a percentage point to 2%. Commercial banks base their interest rates on how much money you borrow and how much you save with them.

The US central bank raised its interest rates by more than a percentage point the day before.

The BoE's decision caused the UK government's long-term borrowing costs to rise immediately. At the end of the day, long-term gilt yields were 0.2 percentage points higher than at the beginning.

The mini-budget was delivered by the Chancellor on the 23rd.

The support scheme for energy bills had been announced. It will cost over $60 billion over the next six months, according to the treasury. For households and businesses, it will last for two years.

A planned rise in Corporation Tax was reversed in the mini-budget. The tax changes were promised by Liz Truss during her leadership campaign.

The basic rate of income tax would be cut a year earlier than expected and the top rate would be abolished. He decided to change his mind about scrapping the top rate.

The package of tax cuts was unfunded because the government didn't set out what savings it might make.

Every budget has an assessment of its plans by the Office for Budget Responsibility, but the mini-budget didn't have one.

The cost of long-term borrowing went up after the chancellor's statement. Long-term gilt yields rose over the course of the day.

The markets were closed over the weekend, but Mr Kwarteng said there would be more tax reductions.

The pound fell to a new low against the dollar on Monday. The cost of long-term borrowing went up. The BoE said long-term gilt yields had increased by the end of the day.

There was a spike in UK long-term borrowing costs after the mini-budget, which was not seen in the other countries.

Hundreds of products were withdrawn from the mortgage market as a result of this.

It had an impact on the UK pension funds.

The BoE had to support this sector in order to keep it alive.

The BoE's intervention led to a fall in the cost of government borrowing, but investors are worried about how long the support will last. On October 14th, it will end.

BoE Chief Economist Huw Pill said the turmoil on the markets reflected broader global developments but there was a UK component.

The BoE decided to intervene in the gilt market after the mini-budget due to the risk of aspiral as increases in the effective cost of government borrowing hurt pension funds.

He said that a large quantity of gilts was likely to be sold on the market.

The chief economist atDeutsche Bank told a committee of MPs that Russia's invasion of Ukraine and high inflation were causing global instability.

He said there was a UK component here. The lack of a medium-term fiscal plan is one of the largest unfunded tax cuts that we've seen since the early 1970s.

The mini-budget "misread" the country's financial situation according to an economist who advised Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng.

He argued that the mini-budget wasn't the sole reason for everything that has happened, but that the financial system was vulnerable to higher interest rates.

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