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Let nobody dare say the prime minister is out of touch with the voters. The Office for National Statistics on Thursday revealed that 44% of us are more inclined to spend our money than save it: we would rather have a good standard of life now than provide for a comfortable retirement. Britain’s finances have been operating on the same principle since the 2001 general election.

Perhaps mindful that a 44% share of the vote would represent a landslide majority, Alistair Darling failed to change course in his pre-budget report (PBR). In these austere times, he announced, spending would go up by an extra £31 billion next year. Even sympathetic economic commentators thought the chancellor’s programme for paying back debt lacked credibility: there is a £30 billion black...