Political opinion: Off the Fence with Dame Caroline Dinenage, MP for Gosport
After months of chaotic briefings, leaked announcements, and then U-turns on the leaked announcements, when Budget Day came we were finally treated to… a day of more chaotic leaks, as virtually the whole plan was published on the Office of Budget Responsibility’s website 40 mins before the Chancellor even rose to speak.
The situation didn’t get any better once we had a chance to study the details.
I was hoping for some positive news in the Budget. After some difficult years caused by the pandemic and the cost of living crisis, the Conservatives left the Chancellor the fastest growing economy in the G7, inflation at 2% and historically low unemployment. I was hoping that the Chancellor would keep her promise not to hit working people.
At last October’s Budget the Chancellor told us that she would not be coming back with more borrowing or more taxes, and that those painful choices that have hit businesses had “wiped the slate clean”.
We now know that wasn’t true, and the promises were hollow. Last week the Chancellor announced 43 further tax rises amounting to £26 billion. That money is being raised by further freezes to tax thresholds which mean that many low earners will be lifted into the tax bracket.
Meanwhile the businesses which pay people’s wages, and drive prosperity are all telling me that they aren’t confident about the future. I’m particularly worried for young people in our area, losing the chance to get on in life. Youth unemployment in the Gosport Constituency has risen by 31%. The direction that Rachel Reeves is taking the country in is not the right one.
The Office for Budget Responsibility has decided that it doesn’t think the measures announced by Labour, taken as a whole, will grow the economy. That means less money for public services, and (they predict) real household disposable income reaching its second lowest level since records began in the 1950s.
As Kemi Badenoch said in her response to Rachel Reeves yesterday, it’s working people who are paying the price for these chaotic decisions. She could have implemented measures to get people back into work and support job creation. Instead, she broke her promises, pushed up the welfare bill and came back for more tax.