Theresa May faces opposition from Treasury over plan to boost spending before she quits as PM

Philip Hammond does not want to break into a "war chest" he has built up in case of a no-deal Brexit

Theresa May is facing resistance from the Treasury to plans to turn on the spending taps in the hope of burnishing her legacy before leaving office.

Chancellor Philip Hammond is understood to have put his foot down over proposals for a string of big spending commitments in the coming weeks which the Treasury believes could soak up as much as £10 billion.

Mr Hammond has told the Prime Minister he does not want to break into a £26 billion “war chest” he has built up to cushion the shock of a possible no-deal Brexit until the prospect of leaving the EU without an agreement is definitively off the table.

Downing Street confirmed that Ms May would spend the remain weeks of her premiership “building on the domestic agenda”, but declined to confirm reports in the Financial Times that a spending announcement could be made every week until she leaves office at the end of July.

The PM is understood to want to use her remaining time in office to tackle some of the “burning injustices” she identified on arriving at Number 10 in 2016, and to invest money in priority issues like education, mental health, parental leave and the tech sector.

A Downing Street spokeswoman declined to give details of plans, but said: “For the the remainder of her time in office she will be building on the domestic agenda that she has put at the heart of her premiership.”

The spokeswoman said that Ms May and Mr Hammond “meet regularly to discuss spending priorities”.

The PM is also expected shortly to announce a new legal commitment to reducing the UK’s carbon emissions to “net zero” by the middle of the century.

Proposals for a legacy spending splurge are understood to have sparked tensions across Whitehall, with some departments questioning why other ministries’ responsibilities should prioritized over their own.

And some ministers believe Ms May could be seeking to ensure she gets credit for boosting per-pupil spending in English schools, rather than leaving it for her successor.

An arms race on school spending has developed within the Tory leadership battle, with frontrunner Boris Johnson promising to “significantly” lift funding to at least £5,000 per pupil, while health secretary Matt Hancock has promised a £3 billion boost and environment secretary Michael Gove £1 billion.

One cabinet source said: “These things should be for the successor. We shouldn’t be spending frivolously on particular projects without thinking about long-term priorities. Decisions like these should go through cabinet and be scrutinized in the normal way.”