Just before the last general election I had a conversation with a prominent Conservative council leader who declared that 'no government has ever managed to actually cut public spending – cut the rate of growth, yes, but not actually cut.'

I was reminded of these comments when poring over the Institute of Fiscal Studies' Green Budget, its own summary of the public finances issued last week. Unlike the real Budget the IFS does not have to play politics or 'big up' the financial picture to impress the money markets and No 10.