Rishi Sunak reveals £95 designer sliders in pre-Budget photoshoot

Rishi Sunak showed off a luxury pair of £95 sliders in his glossy pre-Budget photoshoot.

The Chancellor released a set of photos ahead of the Budget announcement on Wednesday, that included his customary “pre-game” Twix and can of Sprite lying on his desk with his budget red box.

In one he is wearing a pair of Italian designer Palm Angels sliders over a pair of white socks as he goes through the last minute details with an advisor.

One Twitter user joked: “This government have experienced far more expensive flip flops than that!”

The Chancellor, who admits having a “sugar problem”, and has previously said he was a “total coke addict” – before clarifying that he meant the drink, not the class A drug – was asked on Times Radio whether he had pre-budget superstitions.

And he said: “I have a general pre-game routine, pre-match routine, for when I have to do parliamentary things which is, look, I have a sugar problem so I tend to have a Twix and a can of Sprite, even though my favourite thing is Coke but I save that for afterwards.

“But I have a Twix and a can of Sprite which Lisa who runs my office always make sure is sitting there on my desk in Parliament, so that is my immediate pre-game kind of booster.”

The Chancellor will neck a can of Sprite and a Twix before he announces his budget on Wednesday
HMRC

Mr Sunak also said his children “have a lot of input generally on the tie selection and I sometimes wear some bracelets that they make”.

The photoshoot also included a picture of him and his dog Nova - who he joked fell asleep as he prepared his speech.

The Chancellor has confirmed he will scrap the UK Government’s year-long public sector pay freeze in his Budget on Wednesday, paving the way for a possible wage increase next year for those such as teachers, nurses, police and armed forces personnel.

But there is no guarantee the increase will be higher than the rising cost of living, meaning workers could still feel worse off.

According to the latest available data from the Office for National Statistics there were 5.68 million public sector workers registered in June.

Mr Sunak has not set out how much wages will be boosted by, with the rises set to be announced next year following recommendations from independent pay review bodies.

The Chancellor will be wary of facing deputy Commons Speaker Dame Eleanor Laing, who oversees Budget proceedings, after criticism of the way announcements have been briefed in advance.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, went as far to suggest ministers should resign for dishing out details to media organisations ahead of MPs.

The shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, urged Mr Sunak to use the Budget to “create a more resilient economy and take the pressure off working people”.

“With costs growing and inflation rising, Labour would ease the burden on households, cutting VAT on domestic energy bills immediately for six months,” the MP said.

“And we would not raise taxes on working people and British businesses, while online giants get away without paying their fair share.”

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