It's this season's fashion accessory for every politician, the surprise press conference

It’s this season’s fashion accessory for every politician.

- John Crace

Outside election campaigns, press conferences usually signal major set piece events or a national emergency. Now you can’t move for them. Reform have had four inside a week with another one lined up for today. Even Kemi Badenoch has been at it with a bizarre outdoors show-and-tell last Thursday. Blink and you would have missed it.

Yesterday was Rachel Reeves’s turn. Her Corporal Jones “Don’t Panic! Don’t Panic!” moment. Normally a chancellor takes a vow of silence in the weeks leading up to the budget. Not this year. Rachel wanted to give as many clues away as possible.

Call it the budget performed in interpretative dance. Nothing actually spelled out but the message was clear. Not least in the timing. A press conference taking place at 8.10am in Downing Street, broadcast on nearly every terrestrial channel, screams “Help! Things have gone seriously tits up!”

This was Reeves trying to catch a break. Hoping to get in the bad headlines early so that on 26 November she will get an easier ride. Let people imagine the worst and be pleasantly surprised when it turns out not to be as terrible as expected.