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Public more concerned than reassured after Budget, poll suggests

MORE Brits are concerned than reassured about their personal finances following this week’s Budget, a new poll published today reveals.

Just 13 per cent of people told Ipsos they feel better about their cash flow situation following Tory Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s address on Wednesday, and only 12 per cent think Britain’s austerity-hit public services are back on track.

More than a third — 35 per cent — are now more worried about the economy and the NHS, schools and other public services, as opposed to 22 per cent feeling more positive, the survey of 1,000 adults found.

The reaction is better than after Mr Hunt’s autumn statement in November, with many individual polices, such as extending the energy price guarantee until the end of June, receiving enthusiastic support.

But for a Chancellor who stressed there was “no path to re-election for us without a reputation for economic competence,” the poll has less positive news on overall views of the government’s handling of the economy.

Labour still has a six-point lead on which party is most trusted to handle the economy — the same as after the autumn statement — and 61 per cent of people mistrust Tory economic plans, a tenth higher than the figure for Labour. 

Six in 10 blame decisions made by Mr Hunt and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak for the current state of the economy, while two-thirds blame Tory policies since 2010. 

Mr Sunak does still lead Sir Keir Starmer on who is more trusted to manage the economy, but that lead has fallen from eight points in November to just two after the Budget. 

Ipsos’s head of political research Gideon Skinner said: “Many Britons hold the Conservatives responsible for at least some of Britain’s economic difficulties.”

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