Before an election, chancellors often try to woo voters with tax cuts that leave the incoming government in a hole. Here are six ‘poison pill’ speeches
There are budgets that fall apart within minutes of the chancellor delivering his Commons speech: think of George Osborne’s pasty tax, one of many missteps that meant his 2012 budget will be forever known as an omnishambles.
Then there are the “poison pill” budgets: the ones that come at the end of a parliament, when the chancellor of the day goes for broke – sometimes literally – to attract voters and attempt to stay in office. If their party loses, the opposition is left to clean up the mess.
