Prime Minister rules out another general election after ‘giveaway’ Budget
Prime Minister Theresa May and chancellor Philip Hammond today ruled out another UK general election a day after revealing what has been dubbed a "giveaway" Budget.
May told a press conference in Oslo: "No. We are not preparing for another general election. That would not be in the national interest."
Being interviewed on Good Morning Britain, Hammond replied '"I hope not" to a question about whether the Budget would precipitate another election.
"What we're preparing for is Britain's future," he added. "We've spent a very long time rebuilding our economy after the crisis under the last Labour government, rebuilding our position, getting our public finances back into order, and we've now turned a corner and we're able to give Britain a bit of good news."
Hammond also denied that the budget could become "irrelevant" in a no-deal Brexit scenario, after it emerged the Budget might face changes if the UK leaves the EU without an agreement.
"The Budget is the Budget," the chancellor said. "We've set out our measures and those measures will process now through the finance bill.
"Obviously, I very much hope and expect that we will get a deal with the EU and I hope that when we do get that deal there will be a further boost to our economy, a further boost to our public finances. I very much hope that I will be able to add to that pot of money for public spending over the coming years, as a result of getting a good deal with the European Union."
The chancellor revealed yesterday that he has set another £500m aside to guard the UK against no deal, meaning total no-deal Brexit contingencies now total £2bn.
When challenged over tax cuts for the higher paid, having brought the higher rate tax relief of £50,000 ahead by one year, Hammond said "an awful lot of people on middle incomes" were being dragged over the higher rate threshold.
In comments to the Today programme, Hammond added: "If you look at how this budget affects people at all income levels, you will see that it is people at the lower end of the income scale that benefit proportionately most."