George Osborne’s budget had been so heavily flagged in advance that as one spending cut announcement relentlessly followed another, the temptation was simply to say: “But we already know that, don’t we?”
The feeling probably extended to the banks and the rest of the financial community too. So many of the measures affecting the sector had been expected, the sense was more one of relief that it wasn't more punitive, rather than of fear about what it will do on a personal and economic level.