Expectations management appears to be the name of the game for Rishi Sunak

‘I can’t solve every problem,’ said Mr Sunak as he urged people not to be scared by the rising cost of living

‘Where we can make a difference, of course we will,’ said the chancellor (BBC/AFP/Getty)

Expectations management appeared to be the name of the game for the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, as he made his way around the weekend political television shows. “I can’t solve every problem,” said Mr Sunak as he urged people not to be scared by the rising cost of living.

“Where we can make a difference of course we will,” he added, while acknowledging that things are “not going to be easy” and that whatever he announces in this week’s spring statement will not be enough to “fully protect” people from the financial pain of rises in the cost of petrol, heating and other essentials. Mr Sunak, as a number of other government ministers have done recently, admitted that sanctions imposed against are “not cost-free” and will have an impact.

Anybody that has watched events in the Ukrainian city of Mariupol, which the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, labelled “a terror that will be remembered for centuries to come”, is unlikely to begrudge the sanctions regime that is being imposed.

However, it also cannot be used by the government as a blanket excuse for issues that were in motion long before Russia invaded its neighbour. Businesses and unions have told The Independent that the chancellor is facing “a moment of truth” in the cost of living crisis, and it is difficult to argue against that.

The government cannot stick its head in the sand: there is a real need for action not excuses. We have also reported that Mr Sunak has ordered last-minute changes to Wednesday’s mini-Budget, with the Office for Budget Responsibility told – in a highly unusual move – to recalculate its fiscal forecasts to take into account amended Treasury plans.

Pressure is building on the chancellor, with dozens of Tory MPs calling for a cut in fuel duty to reduce the cost of a tank or petrol or diesel.

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The shadow chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has said that Labour would support such a cut but that such a move does not “rise to the scale of the challenge we face”.

Labour wants to reverse next month’s 1.25 per cent hike in national insurance contributions on employers and employees, while the British Chambers of Commerce says the measure should be delayed for at least a year. However, there appears little sign that Mr Sunak is ready to back down on the planned rise.

The chancellor has said that “people can judge me by my actions over the past two years”. In a singular aspect at least – increasing spending to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic – Mr Sunak and the government acted the way they needed to.

But it is clear that further action has to be taken. Yes, the capacity to spend is not endless – but given all the political capital the government has tried to build over promises of a “levelling up” agenda across the country, it cannot let the many that need help now fall by the wayside. Mr Sunak should not shirk the challenge when he lays out his plans this week.