I’ll join the chorus of approval for Chancellor Alistair Darling’s decision to increase tax allowances for basic rate taxpayers. I suppose the Mrs and I should declare an interest (or rather 240 of them). But I do genuinely think that this is good news for low and middle income Britain. It is also progressive and even (mildly) redistributive in a gentle “don’t scare the horses” New Labour way.

I don’t think that there has been any conversion on the road to Damascus, but the government has been given a bloody nose by normally loyal backbench MPs not the “usual suspects”. What does this mean? Gordon Brown is not stupid. I think he will take account of his backbench MPs and realise a mistake was made over the abolition of the 10p rate and learn from it.