If anyone doubted George Osborne's mission to simplify the tax system and rid the Exchequer of lots of arcane bits of tax relief, then think again. Deep within the Budget -- page 68 to be precise -- lies a list of the tax reliefs that are set for the chop and what a weird collection of obsolete oddities it makes.

Britain, it appears, offers tax exemptions on everything from Angostura bitters -- the health tonic that adds a kick to any discriminating cocktail -- through to Black Beer -- Britain's last surviving type of concentrated malt liquor.