This time last week, Philip Hammond stood in the Chamber and made a joke about how the last Chancellor to proclaim they would deliver the last Spring Budget had been sacked 10 weeks later. Little did he then know that just seven days later he would have to face down angry MPs questioning his future — as he appeared in the House to explain the government’s NICs U-turn.
Flanked by Theresa May and David Gauke, Hammond was met with heckles as he said the government had come to the conclusion that while the national insurance class 4 rise is compatible with the tax lock legislation, it ‘does not meet a wider understanding of the spirit of that commitment’. As a result of this, there will be no rise in national insurance in this Parliament. Hammond said that the government ‘sets great store in the opinion of the British people’ and he hoped this move would show that the government is listening.
In response, John McDonnell said it was ‘shocking and humiliating’ that the Chancellor had been forced into a u-turn. He said Hammond ought to spend less time writing stale jokes and the Prime Minister ‘less time guffawing like a feeding seal’. Meanwhile the SNP questioned how he could continue in his role with his credibility in tatters. Matters weren’t helped when Hammond said that it was the BBC’s political editor Laura Kuenssberg who was the first to notify him of the manifesto clash after the Budget — leading to jokes from all sides that this ought to be the job of his advisors. Alex Salmond suggested Kuenssberg be given a Cabinet post pronto to warn the Tories of any future mistakes.
However, all jokes aside — it’s the reaction of the Tory MPs that is crucial for Hammond. There were some positive soundings from the likes of Jacob Rees-Mogg, who praised the Chancellor (in a thinly-veiled jab at his predecessor George Osborne) for appearing himself to face the music. But Desmond Swayne brought Hammond back down to earth when he complained that his article defending the policy for his local paper was already at the printers.
The real test will be at this evening’s meeting of the 1922 committee. As James reports, last week Hammond reassured Tory MPs that they could defend the NICs increase confident in the knowledge government wouldn’t u-turn. Many MPs are now understandable angry that they have put energy into defending a policy only for the government to turn its back on it. The problem for Hammond is that his strength is not his charisma or charm, it’s that he’s perceived to be a safe pair of hands. Take that away and it’s difficult to see what his main appeal is.
In the post-PMQs briefing, the Prime Minister’s spokesman refused to offer an apology for the omNICshambles, Tory MPs will be expecting Hammond and May to muster one tonight.
Comments