The BBC’s stalwart presenter turned her no-nonsense questioning on the squirming Labour minister.

James Murray and Fiona Bruce on Question Time (Image: BBC )

Fiona Bruce gave both barrels to a squirming Labour minister tonight (Friday) as the Question Time audience overwhelmingly gave Rachel Reeves’s disastrous Budget the thumbs down. Labour Treasury minister James Murray, Conservative shadow Treasury minister Gareth Davies, Lib Dem MP Calum Miller, Pizza Express and Gail’s Bakery entrepreneur Luke Johnson and Guardian and Observer writer Sonia Sodha appeared on the popular BBC political panel show aired from Watford.

Things soon turned ugly for the Government as Mr Murray was grilled by a furious audience over the Chancellor’s massive taxation heavy Budget. As the Labour minister attempted to defend his boss’s financial decisions for the nation, presenter Fiona Bruce interjected saying “hang on James”.

She said: “How do you justify the Budget given that growth was a central mission for the Government, you’ve already heard Luke’s criticisms, the OBR says there is not a single individual measure in this Budget expected to materially increase economic growth… how is that anything other than utterly disappointing?”.

Lib Dem MP Calum Miller said people were not seeing the point of working hard, adding: “What people actually need is a belief that any sacrifices they are making now are going to be for a purpose”

He added that the Budget was “hopeless” and should have helped business and the cost of living instead of “hammering” the UK with taxes.

Ms Bruce hosted the panel show from Watford and introduced the first question from the audience to kick off tonight’s show. Audience member Emma, who was wearing a smart jumper and glasses, produced a humdinger of a starter for the panel, asking: “With Rachel Reeves taxing everything and everybody in sight, what is the point in working hard and being aspirational?”