Bookies say Prescott won’t be a biker

Littlewoods Leisure are also encouraging gamblers to take a flutter on Chancellor Gordon Brown’s next move. 2 to 1 favourite is a fuel tax reduction in the March Budget but it’s 3-1 against the tax being reduced before then, with the same odds against it being frozen and 7-2 against it rising.

For one thing it’s a dead cert the crisis will be over sooner rather than later: the Labour Party conference starts on 24th September…