# Healey’s subdued Budget speech draws little reaction in Commons

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/this-budget-had-the-cha-cha-cha-of-siesta-hour-in-a-mexican-town-lower-your-sombreros-hombre-healeys-a-snoozer-quentin-letts/
- Published: 2026-10-29T08:10:45+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-29T08:27:53+00:00
- Original publisher: Daily Mail (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.dailymail.com/debate/article-16246559/Budget-Healey-Quentin-Letts.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490
- Topics: UK, World

## Key points

- Letts describes Healey’s Budget speech as unusually flat.
- Badenoch mocked the measures as “4p off gherkins”.
- The article notes a gas-field slip and a £100 energy measure.

## Summary

John Healey delivered a Budget speech in the Commons that Quentin Letts portrays as subdued and dull, with Labour MPs appearing distracted and the chamber offering little reaction. The article’s main point is that Healey’s delivery and the Budget’s announcements lacked drama, even at a moment Letts describes as significant.

Letts highlights Healey’s verbal slip over approval of the Jackdaw gas field, a £100 energy-bill measure, and jokes that drew laughter, including one about who would become Chancellor. Kemi Badenoch dismissed the Budget as yielding “4p off gherkins”; the piece also notes Nancy Pelosi left the gallery after about ten minutes and several MPs were seen using their phones.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.