Ed Balls’ shouty spending review response avoids difficult dividing lines

Ed Balls had a rather shouty time in the Commons this afternoon when he responded to George Osborne’s spending review statement. It was a shame, because his lack of variation in tone and pace from ‘angry bellow’ level made what wasn’t a bad response a little difficult to follow.

These responses to budgets, autumn statements and spending reviews are very difficult for any shadow chancellor or opposition leader to carry off well: you have no warning of what the Chancellor will say, and just the length of the speech itself to re-shape your pre-crafted speech and collect your thoughts. But Balls had decided when preparing for the spending round that he would talk about the government’s failure to meet its own targets and to foster economic growth, and on living standards.