Overview

He often makes it hard, but you have to feel at least a little sorry for Alistair Darling. Even in better times, Chancellor to Prime Minister Brown had the makings of being one of the worst jobs in the world. Now Mr Darling finds himself neck deep in red ink, much of his boss’s making. Like any of us in an unprecedented situation, he has theories but cannot be sure what to do.

This background makes it all the more important that policy decisions are explained properly. Ideally, the Government should set out an objective, and then describe the policy measures designed to reach it. The voting public, and, perhaps more importantly given the necessary levels of borrowing, the gilt markets, can then make informed judgements.

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