WATCHING the Chancellor deliver her first Budget from the comfort of my own couch was definitely better for my blood pressure than doing so while sitting on the green benches of the House of Commons.

While it was a better Budget than any from the Conservatives that I had to sit through, let’s remember just how low the Conservatives set the bar. A child’s drawing would have done less damage than Liz Truss’s mini-budget, so the competition for Rachel Reeves was far from fierce.

Years of economic vandalism at the hands of the Tories have resulted in a decline in living standards, an increase in inequality and the dismantling of our public services – far from ideal circumstances for any new government to inherit but they do provide clear barometers from which we can judge the success of this Labour Government.

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Labour were elected on a slogan of delivering change. Given that poverty and climate change are the biggest threats we immediately face, you could be forgiven for expecting big and bold ideas. The problem with both this Budget and Labour’s general plans in government, is that not enough is set to change.

Besides the casual corruption, bigotry and harmful economic policies, one of the worst aspects of the previous Tory governments was the absence of long-term planning. Therefore, the unlocking of public investment promised in this Budget should be considered a positive but this promise only seems to apply for the next year.

The raising of taxes to fund public services is the right approach to take but the specific taxes the Government has chosen to raise are arguably not the best options.

We know that investments in young children partly or even entirely pay for themselves by causing better outcomes for those children and society as a whole in later life. So, it is particularly disappointing that the first female UK Chancellor failed to remove one of the most heinous and misogynistic policies – the two-child benefits cap.

The IFS estimated that removing the limit would reduce relative child poverty by about 500,000, so in choosing to keep the cap, Reeves has missed a major opportunity to reduce child poverty.

The minimum wage is set to rise by less than a pound to £12.21 and still falls short of the £12.60 (£13.85 in London) per hour that the Living Wage Foundation calculates is the bare minimum required to get by. A rise is welcome but the Office for Budget Responsibility forecasts that over the next Parliament, disposable incomes are now set to fall.

The Government’s approach seems to be two steps forward, one step back. There are definite steps in the right direction but they are hindered by glaring missed chances to bring about meaningful and lasting changes.

With regards to how this Budget affects Scotland specifically, we see a similar story. There are things to welcome but nothing to get particularly excited about. For 2025-26, the Scottish block grant is set to increase by an additional £1.5 billion bringing the total to £47.7bn.

The UK Government seems keen to point out that this is a real-terms increase but House of Commons Library research found the block grant has been falling as a proportion of UK spending. The SNP say the value has dropped by more than £6bn since 2020.

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While any increase is something to embrace, again, the Government can’t help but dampen any attempt to celebrate. In delivering her Budget, Reeves urged the Scottish Government to spend the money “wisely”. All that was missing was a wagging finger and a warning not to buy too many sweeties.

The patronising tone is bad enough but what really rubs salt in the wound is the idea that Scottish ministers have any real autonomous control. Despite Labour voting against it at the time, there appear to be no plans to revoke the Internal Market Act, which explicitly allows the UK Government to bypass the Scottish Parliament on legislating in devolved areas.

So, when Reeves announced an increase of 18% in the budget for the Scotland Office, it feels fair to assume that may also mean an increase in Westminster meddling. It might seem cynical to assume the worst but we need not look far to validate that cynicism.

Despite regularly criticising the Scottish Government’s efforts to promote Scotland across the world, £750,000 has been announced for “Brand Scotland”, said by the Scotland Office to be “a project to promote Scottish investment opportunities and exports across the globe”.

Now more than ever, we need governments all over the world to invest in people, public services, and tackling climate change. If Labour plan to deliver the change they promised, this Budget ain’t it.