Moreover, the pace at which the debt ratio should be reduced is not set in stone. As things stand, the OBR forecasts the current budget deficit (that is, excluding investment spending) to be down to zero and the debt ratio to peak in 2023-24. But these two landmarks could reasonably be achieved later.

There are two key principles which should guide the Treasury’s thinking on this.

First, the direction of travel must be clear and the financial markets must remain confident that although the debt ratio is high it will come down inexorably in a reasonable time.

Second, the effort to reduce the deficit should not weaken the underlying growth rate of the economy. If it does, then it may even prove to be counter-productive.

Following these two principles, rescinding the planned increases in National Insurance contributions and corporation tax would be perfectly reasonable. When the full effects have come through in a few years’ time, it would increase the annual budget deficit by about £30bn (1pc of GDP).

In principle, this could be offset by cutting planned government expenditure.

Trimming spending a bit doesn’t have to amount to a swingeing bout of “austerity”.

There was no good reason for departmental spending to rise at the rates envisaged by the chancellor in last October’s budget, taking the ratio of government spending to GDP to 42pc, about 2pc higher than the 2015-2019 average.

This was a political choice and, in my view, the wrong one. Given today’s high inflation there will be pressure for more spending. It should be resisted and economies should be sought.

But even if the Government does not have the stomach to reduce the planned growth of departmental spending, that wouldn’t prevent rescinding the tax rises.

It would be perfectly reasonable to allow borrowing (and therefore the debt ratio) to be higher than currently envisaged.

Next year, if the tax rises were rescinded, borrowing would probably run at about £120bn, or just under 5pc of GDP, well down from this year, not to mention last year’s £322bn (15pc of GDP).

There is a good chance that rescinding these planned tax rises would eventually be self-financing, not least because the result would be higher business investment. In the meantime, we have the scope to allow the borrowing numbers to take the strain.

Roger Bootle is chairman of Capital Economics. You can contact him at roger.bootle@capitaleconomics.com