In his first public comments on his budget strategy, Jeremy Hunt made clear that only unexpected bad news over the coming weeks would prevent him from answering the call from Tory MPs for a substantial giveaway ahead of what is expected to be an autumn general election.
Speaking in Davos, where he was attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, the chancellor said: "In terms of the direction of travel we look around the world and we note that the economies growing faster than us in North America and Asia tend to have lower taxes, and I believe fundamentally that low tax economies are more dynamic, more competitive and generate more money for public services like the NHS.
"That's the direction of travel we would like to go in but it is too early to say what we are going to do."
Hunt's precise room for manoeuvre will only become clear when he receives forecasts for the economy and the public finances over the coming weeks, but the picture has brightened since last November's autumn statement due to falling inflation and expectations of interest rate cuts from the Bank of England.
However, his remarks go further than anything he has said previously. Just two weeks ago, when discussing the 2% national insurance 5 → cut that was the centrepiece measure of his autumn statement, he told reporters: "It's the start of a process. As chancellor, if I can afford to go further I will, I don't yet know if I can."
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