FOR his ninth budget last year, Gordon Brown got back into bed with prudence. It was a budget for the elderly, with promises of free bus travel, and for the young buying houses or the even younger attending school. He stayed clear of controversy in the form of drivers, drinkers, smokers and savers.

Overall, it was just the right balance to secure an historic third term in power for Labour, and keep the path smooth for Mr Brown's leadership campaign.

But have all the pledges which were made come to fruition? We look at ten which were made in last year's budget and give marks out of five on whether or not the promises have been fulfilled.

1. A pledge of £400m to introduce free local bus travel for all over-65s.

* Free bus travel will replace the current half-price concession in a £350m scheme due to start on April 1. However, the scheme falls far short, according to some authorities. Tyne and Wear's over-arching transport authority is having to cut subsidised services and concessions for teenagers to pay for the scheme - claiming the Government did not provide enough money - while in County Durham the district councils, who received the funding, initially proposed free travel only within districts, to much criticism, but have now agreed a county-wide scheme.

Verdict:

2. The stamp duty threshold was doubled to £120,000 to assist first time buyers.

* The threshold was doubled, but many estate agents believe the threshold should be at least £150,000 in order to help first-time buyers all over the country.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors believes stamp duty is an "antique tax" and would prefer a system like income tax, with a levy on the amount above a certain level, not on the total transaction value. The current system, it says, causes major pinch points at £250,000 and £500,000.

Chartered surveyor Richard Kebbell, of estate agents JW Wood, with offices in Darlington and Durham, says: "In the North-East the raising of the lower threshold is not so important. First-time buyers here are acquiring properties costing anywhere from £70,000 to £95,000 depending on the location, well below the current level.

"The middle market is where it would really make a difference in this region."

Verdict:

3. A multi-million pound design centre to be launched by One NorthEast at Baltic Park, Gateshead Quays, to open in 2007.

* Project leader, regional development agency One NorthEast (ONE), says the centre will ensure businesses across the North can take advantage of the latest design skills. Plans for the £17m centre, which will offer design studios, office space, research and development facilities, exhibition space and training rooms, are before Gateshead Council and a decision is expected in May.

Lynsey Robinson, ONE's design and innovation manager, says: "Detailed feasibility work and market research has been completed and the concept of the Design Centre is now clearly defined."

Verdict:

4. 2,800 civil service jobs were to be moved out of London, meaning 7,800 jobs towards the target of 20,000 by 2010.

* The Treasury was last night unable to give a breakdown of the figures for the year, but said that by the end of September 2005 a total of 6,300 positions had been relocated.

Last year the Department For Culture, Media and Sport said it would transfer 600 Big Lottery Fund jobs to grant distribution centres in Newcastle and Birmingham. To date, 70 people work within the Fund's regional office in Baron House, Neville Street, Newcastle. The figure is set to rise to almost 250 within the next 12 months, according to One NorthEast's director of regeneration and tourism, John Holmes.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs yesterday said its plans to relocate 390 people from the South-East to offices in York, Newcastle, Alnwick, Workington and Worcestershire by March 31, 2008, were underway but was unable to give a breakdown of figures.

The Student Loans Company, which is part of the Department for Education and Skills, has opened new offices at Mowden Hall, Darlington.

About 40 people were transferred from the DfES and another 60 are being taken on for extra posts.

Verdict:

5. £27m given to set up the National Sports Foundation which would give grants to sports facilities in partnership with private partners.

* The National Sports Foundation (NSF) was first announced by Tessa Jowell in December 2004 as part of a £431m injection of cash into sports. But following last year's Budget announcement no decisions have been made on its structure or grant criteria. A spokesman for the Department For Culture, Media and Sport said: "We hope to have something a bit more substantial in April."

Verdict: Zero

6. £650m to rebuild or refurbish 8,900 primary schools by 2010.

* The £650m figure was for the repair of primary schools and committed funding until 2010.

This was superseded by a timely announcement two weeks ago which set out plans for a £7bn refurbishment of primary school buildings over a 15-year period.

Ruth Kelly's Department for Education and Skills said the money would pay for 900 completely new primaries and refurbish an additional 8,000 primary school buildings. This equates to half the primary schools in the country.

The latest money will start to be rolled out to local authorities from 2008/2009 to 2022 and it likely to be allocated according to deprivation and number of pupils.

Verdict:

7. It was said that businesses would see an end to red tape. Business inspections would fall from 35 to nine a year, the number of public sector watchdogs would be cut from 11 to four and VAT would be simplified for 600,000 firms.

* A Treasury spokesman said there would be an update on all the above in today's Budget. However, both the North East Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses said yesterday that the issue of red tape was still firmly at the top of every businesses' grievance list. Despite the Government paying lip service to reducing red tape, it is seen as an issue of major concern which threatens to undermine the culture of enterprise the Government aims to foster. Yesterday, an FSB survey showed that red tape was one of the main barriers to business growth for small firms.

Verdict:

8. The areas were extended where £2,000 return-to-work bonuses were payable to single parents.

* The payments of £40 a week were part of a raft of measures designed to make it easier for some of the estimated 250,000 single parents around the country who are out of work to get back into employment. But, as yet, the measure has had no impact on single parents in the region.

Pilot projects were set up in five areas around the country: North London; South-East London; Bradford; Dudley, in the West Midlands, and Leicestershire.

The 12-month pilot schemes operated by the Department of Work and Pensions will be completed next month, at which point the Government will evaluate their success - and determine whether to extend the scheme to the rest of the country.

Verdict:

9. A stamp duty exemption was granted for companies moving into 2,000 "enterprise areas".

* The Northern Echo contacted the Cabinet office, the Treasury, HM Revenue & Customs and the Department for Trade and Industry for an update on the stamp duty exemption for companies moving into enterprise areas. We were passed around each Government department and told eventually this came under the joint jurisdiction of the Cabinet Office, Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs. However, none of these were able to supply details on the enterprise areas.

Verdict: ZERO

10. Local Enterprise Growth initiative, worth £300m over three years, with local authorities able to bid for grants of up to £10m.

* The Local Enterprise Growth Initiative is designed to support business start-ups in the country's most deprived areas, targeted specifically at the 88 poorest councils eligible for the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund.

Tthe first round of ten successful applications were announced last month (FEB) - with more than £26m allocated to the region's two winning bids. A joint bid by Easington, Derwentside, Wear Valley and Sedgefield councils was awarded £10.2m over three years - to be used towards supporting entrepreneurial activity among young people, attracting inward investment and reducing the failure rate of businesses.

A similar programme based on South Tyneside was awarded £16.2m, although it will be difficult to judge the success of the projects for several years.

Verdict: