Sunny money?

It was the biggest moment of Jeremy Hunt's political life. Standing in Downing Street yesterday as chancellor of the exchequerThe chancellor of the Exchequer, often just called the chancellor, is the UK government's chief finance minister. They are in charge of taxation and government spending and borrowing. , he held up a battered red box. It represented the government's financial plans - in other words, the budget.

The budget is set once a year, with the government saying what it hopes to collect in tax and how it is going to spend it.

Everyone hopes that it will mean more money in their pockets. Workers and companies hope that they will pay less tax. People receiving benefitsThe upsides of something. hope their allowances will be increased. Public sectorAlso known as the state sector. The part of the economy that is controlled by or organised by the state, rather than private companies. services hope for more funding.

But making everyone happy is almost impossible.

The term "budget" comes from an old French word for a small leather bag in which someone might carry money or plans.

Hunt gave a long speech in the House of CommonsThe democratically elected house of the UK Parliament. It consists of 650 Members of Parliament.  explaining the thinking behind the budget. But some of the key points were already known. 

One was to do with childcare. The government will pay for 30 hours of free care per week for children aged nine months to five. Hunt hopes that this will encourage parents who have not been able to afford childcare to go back to work.

He also dealt with energy bills. These have increased hugely as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and the government has been helping people to pay for them. Hunt said that it would carry on doing so for an extra three months, keeping the average household's annual bill to £2,500.

Tax has been frozen on fuel, but increased on alcohol and tobacco. Companies will pay more tax, but people saving for their pensionsA regular income paid by a government or a financial organisation to someone who no longer works, usually because of their age or health. will pay less.

Spending on defence will rise by £11bn over the next five years.

Hunt hopes that his measures will reduce the danger of a deep recessionA period of economic decline. A recession occurs when a country's Gross Domestic Product falls for six months in a row. , lower inflationAn increase in the price of goods in an economy.  and ease the cost of livingThe money that someone needs to afford basic food, housing and clothes. crisis.

Yes: The childcare measures will draw people back into the workforce and help solve the problem of productivity, which has been very low in recent years. Inflation is expected to fall to 2.9%.

No: According to the Institute of Fiscal studies, the childcare changes will tempt a relatively small number of mothers back to work. The pension changes will not be enough for those striking for more pay.

Or... Nothing in the budget matters as much as the news yesterday that Britain is dropping import dutiesTax collected on items imported (or brought into) a country. on palm oil - whose production is damaging for the rainforest - as part of a trade deal.