how brexit will end, or whether mr hammond will need to find more money in march 2019, to support the british economy. the chancellor insists commitments he has made today will stand whatever happens. "austerity is coming to an end", he said by which he means government spending will rise. and in many ways, this did feel like a budget beyond brexit. there was an upgraded growth forecast. more cash for the nhs, extra money for social care, plus an additional £1 billion for defence. there's 1.7 billion to get help people switching to the uk's new all—in—one benefits system known as universal credit. and the chancellor brought forward by a year a rise in the tax—free personal allowa nce. which means from next april 32 million people will be paying less tax. let's cross to our political correspondent rob watson who is at westminster for us. so does this budget fulfil the prime minister's promise to end austerity. canl minister's promise to end austerity. can i first check, are you both...