Today’s Budget takes fair choices to deliver on the public’s priorities and the change we promised to deliver at the election.
In East Worthing and Shoreham, almost 1,300 children will be better off as a result of the scrapping of the two-child limit on Universal Credit. Every child deserves a fair start in life, and under this Conservative policy, families were hit when a parent died, lost their job or became ill or disabled. 60% of families who will benefit are in work.
In Adur, over 1,000 retail, hospitality and leisure properties will benefit from permanently lower business tax rates – and in Worthing, almost 2,000 will benefit!
Everyone will benefit from an average £150 off energy bills from April, the first rail fares freeze in 30 years, and prescription charge fees.
Pensioners will get a 4.8% boost in their pension, and low earners will benefit from a boost to the minimum wage.
Our economy is turning a corner, beating the forecasts with growth this year upgraded to 1.5%, wages up more since the start of this Parliament than the ten years from 2010, and interest rates and mortgage rates cut 5 times since the election.
To ensure the cost of borrowing continues to fall and to safeguard investment in our schools, hospitals and other public services, we’ve had to make some choices including keeping income tax thresholds where they are today for a number of years.
But we have made sure that those with the broadest shoulders contribute the most, with additional council tax due on properties worth over £2m, and increased rates of tax to be paid on landlord income. And last year, we increased taxes on wealth: on private jets, on private equity and on private school fees.
Budgets are about choices.
The choices this Labour Government has made so far have seen 20,000 people come off waiting lists at our local hospital trust, huge increases in the budget to repair our roads here in West Sussex, the expansion of the clean energy produced by the Rampion Wind Farm and many more local benefits.
A lot done, and a lot more to do.
Some highlights from today:
- Cutting the cost of energy bills — £150 cut from average household energy bill from April.
- Scrapping Two Child Limit — lifting 450,000 children out of poverty.
- Increasing the Minimum Wage from £10 to £10.85 per hour for 18–20 year olds.
- Increasing the Living Wage from £12.21 to £12.71 per hour.
- Increasing the Basic and New State Pension by 4.8% — £440/£575 rises.
- Extending 5p cut to Fuel Duty until September 2026.
- Freezing Prescription Charges.
- Freezing rail fares for the first time in 30 years.
- Extending the Bus Fare Cap.
- Expanding Free School Meals to half a million more children — lifting 100,000 out of poverty.
- More free breakfast clubs in schools.
- Increasing taxes on gambling in response to rise in online gambling.
- Permanently lower Business Rates for 750,000+ retail, hospitality and leisure properties.
- Funding to make under-25 apprenticeship training free for SMEs.
- Funding for New Youth Guarantee — £820m over three years for college, apprenticeships or personalised job support.
- Clawed back nearly £400m from fraudulent Covid spending and contracts.
- 250 new Neighbourhood Health Centres for faster local care.
- £5m for new secondary school libraries and £10m for primary school libraries.
- £18m to improve and upgrade children’s playgrounds across England.
And…
- Reducing borrowing more over the rest of this Parliament than any other G7 economy.
- Cutting interest rates five times since the General Election last year.