Can the chancellor deliver the ‘halt to austerity’?On Wednesday,MPs expect to hear the chancellor tell them that austerity will soon be consigned to history. Philip Hammond said in final year’s budget that “austerity is coming to an halt” and teased ministers with the promise of the cash that he and his predecessor George Osborne denied them in the preceding eight years.
There is a huge gap to fill just to prevent further austerity taking effect. According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the chancellor’s pledge in October to boost NHS spending, and defence and international aid failed to safeguard councils and some of the worst-hit government departments from further shortfalls.
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Source: theguardian.com