AS Chancellor, Rishi Sunak has not had his troubles to seek. A month after he was appointed the first Covid lockdown was announced.

Two years on, as the economy begins to emerge from that crisis, Russia invades Ukraine and the cost of living goes skywards. Now, just to add to his woes, along comes the boss to put his size tens in it. Well, that is one way of looking at it.

If you were feeling generous, Boris Johnson’s comparison of war in Ukraine and Brexit was a crass move that ultimately meant no harm. Those of a more cynical bent, however, might see the resulting row as a canny distraction from a Spring statement this week that has few answers to a growing number of pressing questions.

The uproar over Mr Johnson’s speech to his party’s Spring conference in Blackpool featured widely in the Sunday politics shows.

Mr Johnson, as if trying to rival Mel Gibson’s Braveheart in the number of mentions of freedom, had said: “I know that it’s the instinct of the people of this country, like the people of Ukraine, to choose freedom every time. I can give you a couple of famous recent examples. When the British people voted for Brexit, in such large numbers, I don’t believe it was because they were remotely hostile to foreigners. It’s because they wanted to be free to do things differently and for this country to be able to run itself.”

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Among those to take offence was Gavin Barwell, Theresa May’s chief of staff when she was Prime Minister. The Conservative peer tweeted: “Apart from the bit where voting in a free and fair referendum isn't in any way comparable with risking your life to defend your country against invasion, and the awkward fact the Ukrainians are fighting for the freedom to join the EU, this comparison is bang on.”

First to tackle the Chancellor on the Brexit comparison was Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday. “I don’t think those two situations are directly analogous,” said Mr Sunak. “I don’t think the Prime Minister was saying that they were directly analogous either. People will draw their own conclusions.”

An hour later it was the turn of Sophie Raworth, presenter of BBC1’s Sunday Show, to talk comparisons. By this point, Rachel Reeves, the Shadow Chancellor, had already called the Prime Minister’s remarks “utterly distasteful” and demanded he apologise to UK citizens and Ukrainians.

The Chancellor stuck to his line that the PM was not making a direct comparison, adding: "He was making some general observations about people's desire for freedom.”

Mr Sunak went on to make some general observations of his own about the Spring statement. It is the duty of every Chancellor at such times to tell the media, at length, that there is nothing they can tell the media.

Earlier, in Sunday Morning’s newspaper review, Martin Lewis, the Money Saving Expert, said the cost of living crisis was the worst he had seen in 22 years, and that included during Covid and the financial crash.

“I am virtually out of tools to help people now,” said Mr Lewis, adding that political intervention was now required.

As for what that intervention might be, the Chancellor promised he would “stand by” hard-pressed households. The strongest steer, first revealed in the Mail on Sunday, was towards a cut in fuel duty.

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Accompanying the interview was a photograph. Mr Sunak is known for letting his photoshoots do the talking for him. Whether it is being pictured working at a bank of computer screens (code for look how hard-working I am) or wearing £95 sandals (I’ve got a few bob, and I’m trendy), he is careful about the signals he sends.

This time the nudge was a large photograph above his desk of Nigel Lawson, Chancellor as was, whose top rate tax cutting budget of 1988 caused uproar on the Opposition benches, including the suspension of one Alex Salmond MP.

Just in case the Lawson photo had not been clear enough, Mr Sunak told the paper he had been the pandemic Chancellor, the furlough Chancellor and the fixing-the-public finances Chancellor. Now he wants to be seen as the tax-cutting Chancellor, insisting: “My priority over the rest of this parliament is to cut people’s taxes. That is my mission.”

What is not clear is how long he might have to achieve the label change. According to one report over the weekend, Downing Street advisers have been told to prepare for an election next autumn and not, as expected, May 2024. The pressure is on the Chancellor once more.