'The Chancellor did not have much room for manoeuvre in last week's budget'

The key challenge remains getting to grips with the largest peacetime budget deficit in British history. It has now been reduced by a third – but it is vital to continue to tackle this with a credible plan.

Labour’s solution is to suspend spending cuts and give temporary tax cuts in order to stimulate growth. This would bring higher interest rates and mortgage repayments and illusory growth that repeats the financial problems they helped cause in the first place. £20 billion would be added to the deficit under Labour’s “five point plan”.

The Budget focused on getting economic growth – a £2,000 allowance for employers’ NI and a cut in the headline rate of corporation tax were key announcements for local businesses.

I was very pleased the Chancellor also announced steps to help those on the lowest incomes, continuing the freeze on Labour’s fuel duty escalator and introducing vouchers to reduce childcare costs by 20 per cent.

The biggest step was increasing the personal income tax allowance to £10,000 a year early, meaning that almost 3m people will be taken out of income tax altogether. Tax for those on the minimum wage will have more than halved compared with the last Labour government.

It is great news for Salisbury pubs that the Chancellor has scrapped the beer duty escalator as well as reducing beer duty by an additional 1p. Many constituents have lobbied me on this issue in recent weeks.

The Chancellor has also taken bold steps to make it easier to buy a house through the radical Help To Buy scheme, through 20 per cent shared equity loans, and a generous mortgage guarantee to encourage 80 per cent and 85 per cent mortgages.

As I said last week, there are no quick fixes to the dire legacy we inherited, but the Chancellor has shown he is determined to continue to cut the deficit and encourage those who work hard and do the right thing.

I wish all Journal readers a happy and restful Easter break.