Despite a “cloud of uncertainty hanging over the economy” caused by the UK’s chaotic withdrawal from the EU, Chancellor Philip Hammond delivered cautious optimism in the UK’s finances as he outlined his Spring Statement to Parliament this afternoon, telling MPs that he was “acutely conscious that the house has other business” on its mind.

Although growth in 2019 has been cut to 1.2 percent, Mr Hammond told MPs that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) figures show Britain will grow in every year of its five year forecast with cumulative growth over five years slightly higher than forecast in the Autumn Budget of...