Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s overriding message in his big pre-election Budget was that hard economic choices were paying off in the form of tumbling inflation, improved growth and the promise of more cuts to personal taxes. But his Budget also promises a brutal fiscal reckoning for whoever wins the general election expected later this year. Lucy Fisher discusses the Budget’s implications with FT economics columnist Soumaya Keynes and Political Fix regulars George Parker and Stephen Bush. Follow Lucy on X: @LOS_Fisher Want more? Free links: Chancellor’s modest Budget giveaways set up fiscal pain for after election Labour claims chancellor will create a £46bn fiscal hole with pledge to scrap NI The 2024 Budget in brief Sign up here for 30 free days of Stephen Bush's Inside Politics newsletter, winner of the World Association of News Publishers 2023 ‘Best Newsletter’ award.  Presented by Lucy Fisher. Produced by Manuela Saragosa with Leah Quinn. Audio mix and original music by Breen Turner. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.  Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.