Jeremy Hunt’s low-key Budget

If Jeremy Hunt’s Budget was the final flourish before a May election, it’s going to be a very low-key campaign indeed. The Chancellor did announce his National Insurance cut as trailed overnight, and abolished the non-dom status – also trailed – which will raise £2.7 billion for tax cuts for working people. He increased the child benefit threashold to £60,000, and prolonged the cut in fuel duty. But he had no big surprise, and no aggressive political attack. I suspect that the excited chatter around Westminster about Rishi Sunak calling a spring poll may die down a little now.

There was still plenty of talk in the chamber as Hunt gave his Budget statement, to the extent that the deputy speaker Eleanor Laing had to intervene repeatedly to tell Labour MPs – including shadow health secretary Wes Streeting – to stop shouting and talking over the Chancellor.