Why didn't Lindsay Hoyle chair the Budget and who is the Deputy Speaker?

As Rachel Reeves unveiled £40 billion worth of tax rises to "rebuild Britain", it was Nusrat Ghani keeping order in the Commons instead of Sir Lindsay Hoyle.

Sir Lindsay's absence at the Budget statement is a matter of tradition. Usually no Budget is led by the Speaker - instead it is left to a deputy, the Chairman of Ways and Means.

The position is currently occupied by Nusrat Ghani, who has served as Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons and as Chairman of Ways and Means since July.

Ghani is the senior Deputy Speaker, and is the first ethnic minority MP to be elected to the position.

She is one of three Deputy Speakers - Judith Cummins and Caroline Nokes were also elected in July.

However, they each have different roles, and Cummins and Nokes were elected to First Deputy and Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means, respectively.

This is the first time ever there is an all-female line-up of Deputy Speakers.

What does the Deputy Speaker do?

All three of the Deputies assist the Speaker in his duties.

The senior Deputy Speaker, who is the Chairman of the Ways and Means, is elected from the opposite side of the House to the Speaker.

They are responsible for chairing the budget, the selection of amendments during Committee of the whole House and supervising business in Westminster Hall, the House of Commons’ parallel chamber, according to the UK Parliament website.

Why does the Deputy Speaker chair the Budget statement?

Up until the 18th century the position of Speaker was one that came with significant danger and at times was untenable.

They had to represent the House's interests to the King on one hand, and the King's interests to the House on the other – at times putting them at odds with both.

In the late 17th century the Commons decided that when it came to financial demands from the King, it would need to resolve them as a whole house.

So, the position of Chairman of Ways and Means was created, keeping the Speaker from chairing the budget who was seen by some as the King's spy.

Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News. Direct to your inbox every Friday morning.

The UK parliament website says: "It is the custom for the Chairman to take the chair during the debate on the Chancellor's Budget, even though there is nothing preventing the Speaker from presiding over the Budget debate (and it has happened in practice). The financial measures contained in the Chancellor's Budget are brought in on Ways and Means Resolutions."

Who is Deputy Speaker Nusrat Ghani?

Nusrat Ghani is the Conservative MP for Sussex Weald.

She was elected in 2015, and has previously held Ministerial positions in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Department for Business and Trade.

Ghani made history after she was became the first ethnic minority MP to be elected to the role of Deputy Speaker.

Have you heard our new podcast Talking Politics? Every week Tom, Robert and Anushka dig into the biggest issues dominating the political agenda…