23 JUNE 1979, Page 21

Last edition

Sir: Mr Ferdinand Mount writes of the Chancellor's Budget: 'You announce the biggest tax cuts in history and half an hour later all the Evening Standard says is 'UP, UP, UP – Drinks, Smokes, VAT and 10p on the gallon'. (16 June) At the time we went to press with that edition the tax cuts had not yet been announced. For Sir Geoffrey, like all the other Chancellors I can remember, preferred to keep the biggest strawberry at the bottom of the basket.

Our final edition reads 'Howe's give-and-take Budget TAX SLASH But UP go drinks, smokes, VAT, petrol and Bank rate'.

Charles Wintour Editor, Evening Standard, London EC4