Contested grants to hidden cuts: how ‘Scrooge’ Sunak's shine faded

Grants to ministers' seats and plans to axe spending and lift taxes marred the chancellor's post-Covid package

Richmond's cobbled market square is quiet compared to the bustling Saturday mornings of pre-lockdown times, though there is a hubbub of well-heeled retirees bumping into people they know and stopping for a chat.

The jewel in the heart of North Yorkshire, the gateway to the Yorkshire Dales," is how the town proudly brands itself. Tourism is important here. But even when visitor numbers are badly down, as they are now, there is an air of rural affluence about the place that suggests Richmond will survive hard times far better than most.

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