Will Donald Dunk Bookies

Following his Budget speech, bookmakers William Hill are offering odds of 4/6 that Gordon Brown will still be in his current position for the 2007 March Budget and 11/10 that he will no longer be Chancellor of the Exchequer by that time.

William Hill now make Labour a 4/6 chance to win most seats at the next General Election and offer the Conservatives at 11/10 and the Lib Dems at 80/1.

One of the best backed budget specials was for the tax on beer to be increased by 1p or less and Mr Brown duly obliged punters with a 1p increase costing bookies a tidy sum.

William Hill's spokesman Rupert Adams said, "Punters up and down the country will be having a pint on Gordon after many correctly predicted that he would only put a penny on the price of a pint, including one punter from Croydon who opened an account to place a bet and will be picking up a cheque for over £1300."