LICHFIELD’S MP has described Labour’s first budget for 14 years as a “major step forward” for the country.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves unveiled her financial plan for earlier today (30th October).
Included were measures such as £1.4billion to repair school buildings, £500million for road repairs and a £1billion uplift in SEND funding.
The minimum wage will also rise in April to £12.21 an hour, while those aged between 18 to 20 will see their minimum hourly pay rise from £8.60 to £10.
But there has been criticism from business leaders over changes to National Insurance payments, with Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce director Raj Kandola saying the budget would “ultimately hit those employing lower paid workers”.
He said:
“There’s no getting away from the fact that businesses will bear the biggest brunt in tax rises as the Chancellor attempted to strike the right balance between maintaining fiscal responsibility and driving business investment.
“Raising the rate and lowering the threshold for employers National Insurance will ultimately hit those employing lower paid workers.
“Coupled with the increase in the National Living Wage and other measures associated with the Make Work Pay agenda, many firms will continue to suffer from crippling cost pressures.”
But Lichfield’s Labour MP Dave Robertson said “bold pledges” made by the Chancellor would deliver improvements in health, education and the overall economy.
He said:
“What the Chancellor made clear was that this will not be like the past 14 years, where the Conservatives constantly picked the pockets of working people.
“Just as we promised in the election campaign, Labour will protect working people with no increase in employees’ National Insurance, the basic, higher or additional rates of income tax or VAT.
“It’s clear that Labour will take the long-term decisions needed to grow our economy to rebuild Britain and fix our schools, hospitals and broken roads.”
Other changes will see the state pension will rise by 4.1% in April, while the Chancellor said a £22.6billion uplift would go into the NHS.
Mr Robertson said:
“Today, we heard how Labour is going to fix the NHS after 14 years of things going backwards under the Tories. The Chancellor announced new funding to deliver two million extra NHS appointments.
“That is a fantastic start to our mission to build an NHS fit for the future. On the back of this new funding, I’ll certainly be pushing for the reopening of the maternity unit at Samuel Johnson Community Hospital.
“The Chancellor has also trebled funding for free breakfast clubs and put money into fixing our creaking schools, which have been neglected for far too long.
“We’re also restoring stability and confidence to the agricultural sector by introducing a New Deal for Farmers. This will boost rural economic growth and strengthen food security, alongside nature’s recovery.
“I know this will reassure many in my constituency.”
The basic and most fundamental statistic that Dave Robinson and other goverments always ignore is that Great Britain is one of the highest taxed countries in the world and yet has poverty requiring food banks, services that are dysfunctional, health service that is almost inexcessible, water that is poisonous, millions out of work, lack of accommodation, and immigration that is costing billions that can’tbe controlled. There is much else but you have possibly got the trend.
Having a hypothetical policy that this budget will generate growth is risible. We have already sacrificed our production base to the east. All we are doing now is moving the coffee cups round in circles. We are no longer a player in world affairs. We just spend like we think we are.
Water that is poisonous what kind of drivel is that. Hasn’t killed me yet after 80 plus years of drinking it
The public services and infrastructure in this country is a mess through the last government failing to invest. Everything is crumbling and needa re-investment.
The last government knew this, but they also knew they were not going to get in. So in a brazen attempt to stitch up Labour, and leave them with as little money to play with as possible to invest, they slashed Employee NI by 4% within the space of a few months.
Labours main fault here is that instead of reversing that, they were backed into saying they would not put up taxes and restricting themselves, and thus having to make back that shortfall via business.
So anyone hating on Labour needs to take a hard look at the last lot, who put party first and played politics rather than what was good for the country. They tried to make it as difficult as possible for Labour to succeed all in the name of winning a few votes back.
I’m happy to take the pain for better services, so I’m prepared to see how it pans out.
@Tubbs : Labour launched a £25 billion raid on employers national insurance. Increased government borrowing by £32 billion a year after rewriting the fiscal rules. Hit savers and investors with an extra £2.5 billion in capital gains tax. Raised inheritance tax. Announced an immediate £25 billion cash injection for the nhs , despite previously warning it needed reform. Putting VAT on private schools which experts have forecasts around 20,000 to 30,000 children could go into state sector. Make farmers pay inheritance tax on their farms , Most farmers are struggling to keep going this will be the end for most of them. They can’t even give you a definition of a working person. Rachel Reeves said she cannot rule out more tax rises in the next five years. Labour was dishonest with the public in the run up to the general election to win votes.
A budget to raise £40 billion to plus a £22 billion ‘black hole’.
excellent maths by Labour.
Our new MP is simply trotting out the Labour party line.
To say “restoring stability and confidence to the agricultural sector” is simply not true. Is our MP unaware of the potential impact and destruction of UK farming that will happen if the updated inheritance tax rules for agriculture are not scrapped?
Farmers are not sitting in piles of cash for a family owned farm to be able to pay 20% inheritance tax on generational transfer. The cost of borrowing the cash would be too high for the margin in the farms to support. The farm would be lost.
Farmland should not be transferred into big corporations or become fields of solar panels.
I always thought Mr Robertson had the welfare of the community he serves at the forefront of what he advocated.
this article merely repeats the Party mantra , and quite frankly there is a big “ head in the sand” approach that simply does not “ cut it”
Already there are reports of businesses that will struggle to retain/recruit more people, GP’s/Pharmacies will be significantly impacted by the additional NI burden- further proof that this budget is ill thought out and will not deliver what it promises.
yet again it looks like our constituency has elected an impotent MP?!
@Phillip, the UK isn’t one of the most taxed countries in the world, nowhere near.
@belleview, I consider myself a working person and my taxes haven’t gone up and I’m sure that’s the case for most other people. The government have been true to their word.