I DON’T envy Alastair Darling. Getting the job when he did was about as poisonous as chalices get.

So he gets some points from me for simply turning up, rather than taking the much more alluring alternative of heading off to the nearest hills. He gets some more for a rather refreshing honesty in some of the numbers provided, though that does not do much to reinforce confidence in the forecasts.

Peter Bickley, chief economist at Deutsche Bank, said: “We are, without doubt, in a mess. It’s true, of course, that most other folks are too, and in our individual and collective ways we have each managed to make life more difficult for ourselves than it should have been.

“Here in the UK, our self-inflicted injury is well known; contrary to claims emanating from ‘sources’ close to Whitehall, we certainly did not fix the roof while the sun shone – rather we flogged off a load of the slates. No surprise that we have dry rot in the attic.”

I think this is a great summary of what has in theory happened over the “good years” we have experienced, and is also a frustration now being felt by many of us.

From a financial viewpoint, it is true to say that Wednesday’s proposals will have very little impact on the majority of us, and for the very few affected by the new super tax bracket (50 per cent for those earning in excess of £150,000), the actual income received by the Government will be minimal compared to the negativity it will generate.

After recent turmoil, this Government is supposed to be promoting entrepreneurism during the period of economic downturn.

Surely implementing this will put off anyone wanting to become the next Duncan Bannatyne? If anyone knows where the incentives are to become successful, please let me know.

Now for those who do have savings at the moment, you will be pleased to know that the ISA contribution limits are being increased to £10,200 per annum. But before you get too excited, and in true Darling style, it is more complicated than you may think. The cash ISA limits are only increasing from £3,600 to £5,100 per annum, therefore only offering you about £40 per year of benefit. You can take advantage of these increases if you are aged over 50 by October, if not, you will have to wait until next April.

If this economic situation is as grave as we are all led to believe, why can we not have the benefits that help us right now and save us some money in our pockets? If the forecasts are to be believed, by the time these schemes are implemented, our Great Britain will be back into an economic boom. It doesn’t make sense to me.

■ Karl Pemberton is director of Active Financial Services, of Guisborough, east Cleveland. He can be contacted on 01287- 632367 or at activefinancialservices.co.uk