U.K., Canada Lead West in Weaning Economies Off Covid-19 Pandemic Support

LONDON—The U.K. dialed back government stimulus for the fast growing British economy, one of the first big Western economies to step away from the emergency policies put in place to tackle the coronavirus pandemic as concerns over inflation intensify.

Treasury chief Rishi Sunak set new tax and spending policies that together with faster growth are forecast to shrink the U.K.’s budget deficit significantly over the next few years, putting the U.K. in the vanguard of countries reducing fiscal support for their economies as the strong but fitful recovery from the pandemic continues.