What (not) to expect from the budget

Tomorrow’s budget is unlikely to offer universities much directly, but they may benefit from efforts to boost Britain’s post-Brexit economy.

Austerity may or may not be over, but universities should not expect any largesse from tomorrow’s budget. They could nonetheless benefit from second-order measures that chancellor Philip Hammond might—and certainly should—take to address the structural economic and social imperatives for post-Brexit Britain.

The budget will, regrettably, provide another reality check on how far universities have slipped in the government’s priorities. Even after allowing for Brexit no-deal contingencies, the queue for long-overdue funding injections is long: health, welfare, social care, defence and local services are all on a promise of help “when economic circumstances allow”.