Budget briefing: the key questions answered by Heather Stewart and Pippa Crerar

Not at all. Reassuring febrile financial markets appeared to be one of Andy Burnham’s motivations in putting Healey in No 11, and this ‘steady-as-she-goes’ budget seems to have met that brief, for now.

The chancellor promised to keep Labour’s deficit-reduction plans on track, albeit at a slower pace in the early years of the forecast – raising taxes modestly to do so.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) now expects him to meet his crucial first fiscal rule – to balance day-to-day spending with revenues – with a margin of £15bn to spare. That’s a slimmer cushion than the £24bn Rachel Reeves had at the spring statement, but investors appear to have taken it in their stride, with barely a flutter in the bond markets.