A £2bn public finances surplus has fallen to Philip Hammond so he could yet boost the NHSPhilip Hammond just got lucky. What was shaping up to be an extremely tricky budget for the chancellor all of a sudden looks quite a lot easier. July is normally a valid month for the public finances because it is a time when tax receipts advance rolling in to the exchequer, but the size of the surplus – £2bn – has been a pleasant surprise. Not since Gordon Brown was in his frugal phase at the Treasury during Tony Blair’s first Labour administration 18 years ago has there been a July as valid. Related: Squalid prisons are just the start. The entire justice system is in meltdown | Polly Toynbee Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com