UK Politics / Mike Robb / 12 March 2008 / Leave a comment

How long will his speech last? What will be the rise in beer and cigarette duty? Bet now!

You can now bet on today's budget on Betfair. Four markets are being offered on Chancellor Alistair Darling's debut announcement:

1. How long will the Budget speech last?

Three options are available to bet on: 55 minutes or under (odds: [2.2]), 56-65 minutes ([1.84]) or 66 minutes and above ([2.74]). If you think you know how long he's going to drone on for why not have a bet! Furthermore, this market will be offered in-running right up until the point the Chancellor sits down, so you can bet right up to the end.

Click here to bet on how long the budget speech will be

2. Beer Duty

How much will be added to beer duty? If you don't think there will be any increase, you can get [3.3], an increase of just one pence is [2.1] and two pence or more increase is the hot favourite at [1.3]. If you think we're in for a large increase on alcohol then that price might seem quite appealing, so why not get on?

Click here to bet on the beer duty component of the Chancellor's budget

3. Cigarette Duty

Duty on 'fags' is largely expected to rise considerably today and this is reflected in the odds - a rise of 11 pence or more is just [1.02] on Betfair, indicating that Betfair users see this as a sure thing. If you disagree you can back no increase at [10.0] or one to ten pence at [2.1].

Click here to bet on the cigarette duty component of the Chancellor's budget

4. Corporation Tax

The Betfair market suggests that there will be a decrease in the levels of corporation tax in today's budget as the Chancellor looks to ease pressure on large companies in times of economic uncertainty. If you envisage an increase or no change in these levels you can bet at [2.0].

Click here to bet on the corporation tax component of the Chancellor's budget

Tags: Alistair Darling, Budget betting, Budget odds, Budget Speech, election odds, politics betting, politics odds, The Budget 2008