Yesterday, Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt announced his Spring Budget in the Commons. This Budget stood out, but not due to the content. Most announcements, including the 2% National Insurance cut, had already been trailed and are too minor to cause a ripple in the polls. It was in fact the tone of the speech that was noteworthy. Traditionally, the Budget is a different type of speech to the House; it is far less rhetorical and far more factual. While there is still spin, it is rarely the opportunity for grandstanding that is usually present in PMQs and other features of our political theatre. Yet yesterday marked a distinct shift to the Budget primarily serving to laud the virtues of the Conservatives and take shots at their opponents.
Unfortunately for Hunt, this is hard to do when your Party has presided over a particularly challenging time in the UK's history which has to a great extent been self-inflicted. Many point to the "mini-Budget" during the blink-and-you'll-miss-it premiership of Liz Truss as the main example of this, but it is in fact the most recent. Austerity, Brexit, and Covid management are just a few of the decisions that have contributed to the current state of affairs, creating a literal alphabet of errors. But if you recently emerged from a 14 year hibernation and listened to the Budget, you would think that the Conservatives have expertly navigated choppy waters to lead Britain to a better place than expected.
Yet Hunt's assertions and jibes did not match with reality. He repeatedly said that Labour is the party of high taxes, while being the Chancellor presiding over the highest tax burden in 70 years. He stated that we are turning the corner economically, while we are in a recession. He praised our fast growth over Europe, while being forced to admit our growth is only better than three other European countries that he selected. There is putting a spin on things, and then there is this. The Budget, like a significant proportion of Conservative messaging, ended up being a cynical attempt to distort reality.
This cognitive dissonance did not manage to obscure how his attempted jokes fell somewhat flat when held up to even the lightest scrutiny. Commenting on Keir Starmer's weight, mocking the Liberal Democrat's lack of principles, and jabbing at Angela Rayner about home ownership was not only lacking in humour but laced with heavy hypocrisy. These latter critiques ring hollow from a member of the party-gate Party and someone who owns several flats on the South Coast. Granted, Hunt's recent marathon training meant the first jibe was less baffling, but there was irony in a failed former Health Secretary making light of the epidemic of obesity which is straining the NHS for a cheap pun.
Overall, this Budget will not shape the election. Recent rumblings of a May election may come to fruition, but that will be due to the current challenges Labour is having with the Muslim community, not because this Budget blew the public away. The NI cut and the non-dom tax status changes serve to damage them further by making the potential next Labour Government have even less fiscal headroom; most moves of these Government seem more interested in making the task harder for their successors than helping govern the people. But this is not likely to force people to change the direction of their vote. However, it does mark the end of one of the few political events that felt slightly less political. The seriousness of the country's economic future has been disregarded in favour of scoring points. And while it seems unlikely any voter would fall for this, these tactics are being used around the world to great effect. As tiresome as it may become, it is necessary for a functioning democracy for deceit and distortion to be recognised, condemned, and repudiated. The next Budget will likely be with a new Chancellor, but the damage may already be done.
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