Reeves didn't heed Isa reform sirens, but a shift from cash to shares is still a wise investment

Hands off our cash Isas! Don't punish savers for choosing safety! Don't force everyone into stocks and shares! Think of the havoc you'll cause for first-time buyers if you deprive banks and building societies of their stickiest source of deposits! Don't fall for the self-interested lobbying of City fund managers!

- Nils Pratley

The cries were loud and furious ahead of the spring statement and, in the event, Rachel Reeves did nothing on Isas. But prepare to have this quarrel all over again in the autumn because the documents confirmed the Treasury is still considering a cap on cash within an individual's £20,000-a-year allowance.

"The government is looking at options for reforms to individual savings accounts that get the balance right between cash and equities to earn better returns for savers, boost the culture of retail investment, and support the growth mission," said the statement.

The howls of protest will continue, then. But, actually, Reeves is right to look at changes. The £20,000 allowance is generous by European standards. It is not unreasonable for the Treasury to ask if tax reliefs would do better work for everyone - savers included - if greater sums were directed at productive assets, such as UK equities.