Chancellor accused of ‘insulting millions’ with joke about budget

Said his plan had caused ‘a little turbulance’

Kwasi Kwarteng has been accused of insulting millions after he made a joke about how his mini-Budget spooked the markets.

The pound fell to its lowest level for 37 years and the Bank of England was forced to intervene in the wake of his tax-cutting spree.

But in his first speech to the Conservative party conference as chancellor, he offered no apology for the days of chaos that ensued and joked that his plan had caused “a little turbulence”. After the turmoil of recent days he also pledged an “ironclad commitment to fiscal discipline”.