Labour is right to be scared of Rishi Sunak

Labour is terrified of Rishi Sunak. Today’s Budget showed exactly why. The Chancellor put in an impressive performance: It was assured and hit the right notes at the right times. It also laid the groundwork for a narrative on the economy that will work very well for the Tories. Sunak told voters that George Osborne’s cuts created the money that comprised the Covid recovery spending. This ties together the whole of the last decade of Tory rule in a neat package – something Boris Johnson has avoided doing with his ‘I’ve only been Prime Minister for five minutes’ routine.

Labour folk will now complain and shout ‘Tory austerity!’ until they are blue in the face. But this is unlikely to be effective: Sunak’s narrative will soon become the orthodox view. This follows the pattern of another story told by the Tories that harmed Labour a decade ago; that ‘Labour didn’t save while the sun was shining’. The Tories saved when they had to, then spent when the crisis hit; and they will cut back when needed once the economy is back on its feet in order to save our grandchildren from crippling debt.