The starting gun for the next general election campaign may have already been fired, but today’s Autumn Statement represents an intensification of hostilities. The Chancellor took some of the fiscal headroom handed to him by the Office for Budget Responsibility and sought to give voters — not least Tory backbenchers — something back.
Jeremy Hunt vowed to reward workers as he goes for growth. The main emphasis was on business taxes, where a competitive environment is so critical to securing growth and boosting productivity. Yet the Chancellor’s promise threatens to collide with economic reality, given that the Bank of England is forecasting GDP to flatline next year.
