It has been obvious that the public finances were in need of repair ever since the crisis struck in 2007. That in itself is not particularly surprising.

The Great Recession, like all recessions, dramatically reduced national income and the inevitable consequence was a fall in tax revenues. At the same time unemployment soared and with it welfare payments.

What is surprising is that seven years on from the start of the Great Recession, and over four years after the election of a government committed to eliminating the deficit, there still remains a lot to do.

Seven lean years will certainly not be followed by seven fat years.