Chancellor John Healey filmed downing pint after delivering maiden Budget

The chancellor was caught on camera downing a pint of Chancellor’s Choice beer after delivering his maiden Budget to the Commons.

John Healey was captured pouring the beverage and then sinking it in one as civil servants cheered around him following a gruelling day where he laid out his economic plans for the country.

The aptly-named pint was created by Rotherham-based Chantry Brewery to celebrate the government’s cut to business rates for pubs, clubs, and live music venues earlier this year. In the video, Mr Healey flicked his red tie over his shoulder to down the drink before turning the glass upside-down over his head triumphantly.

Treasury secretary Dan Tomlinson shared the video on X with the caption: “The boss seeing off a pint of Chancellor's Choice after a long day at the office”.

Mr Healey’s John Prescott moment came after he said he would raise the price of a pint by 2p as a trade-off for a raft of cost of living measures aimed at keeping prices low for British households.

He said he would cut tariffs on everyday shopping items including gherkins and chocolate, extended the VAT cut on electricity bills, and raised the minimum wage 3.9 per cent for 2.3 million workers.

But his Budget has faced criticism for not dealing with the ballooning cost of welfare, including from Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who said the country is “drowning in an out-of-control welfare system”.

Helen Miller, director of influential Institute of Fiscal Studies, also criticised the announcement, saying it offered a only a “raft of fiddly measures but very little that will move the dial on growth”.

She warned: “But on many other big areas – disability benefits, support for young people, plans for social care, and the path for defence spending – we are still waiting... the government has left itself many difficult decisions, against a backdrop of lower headroom, worse living standards, and continued economic risks.”