Ian Mean, Gloucestershire director of Business West, explains why controversial measures introduced in the Budget need to be reversed.

In an article for Punchline, Mr Mean (pictured) writes: "Time was when the Budget aftermath was just a few days of economic analysis and then everybody moved on.

Not so with Philip Hammond's 'first and last' Spring Budget last Wednesday with the Sunday papers yesterday in full flight against his tax rise on the self-employed.

'Cabinet War over Budget Shambles', was the page one headline in the Tory supporting Sunday Telegraph over a story that claimed the Cabinet was never briefed about the National Insurance hike actually breaking a manifesto promise.

And to rub salt into the wounds of the Chancellor, former Chancellor Norman Lamont, who was the subject of the butt of a joke from Mr Hammond last week, took him to task in the Daily Telegraph on Saturday.

Mr Lamont wrote: "Election pledges should not be lightly given-to have committed oneself to not raising VAT, income tax and National Insurance all at the same time was unwise in the extreme - tax pledges cannot be lightly cast aside.

"My guess is that, in time, the Chancellor's tax raid on the self-employed will be seen as a rookie error."

It is not often that The Sun gets worked up about tax but that's what they did brilliantly straight after the Budget under the headline: 'Fight Van Scam'.

They took the Chancellor to task on behalf of what they called "our army of white van driving readers to back our demand he scrap a £240 National Insurance rise for 2.4 million grafters."

And the Prime Minister then "paused" the Budget announcement until the Autumn.

What she should now do is reverse the whole scenario.

It is just not worth upsetting the self-employed who are the very people who are driving business and generally Tory voters.

And many of them are not, as the Sun affectionately labels them 'White Van Man'.

A large percentage are managers and professionals who make up more than 1.5million of Britain's 4.8million strong self-employed workforce, according to the Office for National Statistics.

This ONS data is very revealing. It says that workers in '"financial and business activities" are responsible for the vast majority of growth in employment since 2001.

I am self-employed after 50 years in journalism, the last 16 of those editing newspapers in Gloucestershire and Bristol.

After a lifetime of employment with holiday pay and all those perks that went with the job, I am now self-employed and happy to pay VAT and corporation tax.

But I do resent the idea that after a lifetime of salaried working and paying hefty taxes, I am some sort of species which needs to pay more into the government coffers for the services they provide.

Rather than raising taxes for the self-employed, Mr Hammond should be giving them tax breaks and encouragement to continue to drive business in the UK at a time when we need all the entrepreneurs we can get as we exit the EU.

That encouragement now needs to be woven into a credible business strategy from the government.

Currently, it shows little sign of really supporting business following what appears to be a fairly weak attempt at developing an industrial and business strategy which will encourage productivity and competitiveness as we this week prepare to exit the EU."

What do you think? Email mark@moosemarketingandpr.co.uk