King Charles and chancellor hold pre-Budget meeting

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King Charles with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt in Buckingham PalaceImage source, PA Media

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Chancellor Jeremy Hunt with King Charles in Buckingham Palace

King Charles has met Chancellor Jeremy Hunt ahead of Wednesday's Budget.

The King, who is undergoing cancer treatment, held a pre-Budget audience at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday morning.

The meeting was part of the King's constitutional duty as head of state, which he has continued since his cancer diagnosis announced in February.

The monarch traditionally meets the chancellor the day before a Budget is presented.

Pre-Budget audiences are usually private, but this time a photograph was issued showing the King shaking hands with the chancellor and sitting next to him in Buckingham Palace.

While the King continues to carry out constitutional duties, he has paused public engagements while he undergoes treatment after his cancer diagnosis.

Buckingham Palace has not revealed the type of cancer the King has, or where he is receiving treatment.

Mr Hunt will deliver the Budget on Wednesday - his fourth fiscal event as Chancellor of the Exchequer.

His statement in the House of Commons will outline the government's spending plans.

In an interview with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Hunt hinted he would cut taxes in a "responsible" way.

The chancellor is also expected to tell councils in England to cut spending on diversity schemes during his Budget speech. Though the Local Government Association said most councils spent "pence" on projects like these.

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