Off the Fence: Is that it? Government's grand budget plan a bit of a damp squib

When Andy Burnham became Prime Minister he made grand promises to the Labour Party and the country about reversing decades of political direction.

The Budget was the first opportunity for his government to flesh out what this meant.

And, let’s face it, the backdrop for this was pretty bleak. Borrowing costs are now higher than at any period of Conservative government. The UK is paying more than its entire defence budget to service its loans, at a time when the world has almost never felt more unstable.

Over the last two years decisions to borrow more, tax more, and regulate more have taken their toll on our economy.

In practice that means jobs are harder to find, especially for younger people. In the Gosport constituency youth unemployment has risen by 23% in the last two years. That’s fewer opportunities for young adults who want to get their foot on the job ladder and build towards their own independence.

As the Budget came and went Kemi Badenoch summed it up best - “Is that it?”

I wanted to hear that the Government was going to set out a way to fund our Armed Forces. The threats we face as a country are more complex than ever before. We cannot do it with our ships stuck in Portsmouth Harbour, our cyber security vulnerable and our Service Accommodation crumbling.

Don’t forget, only four months ago this Chancellor resigned as Defence Secretary because Keir Starmer wouldn’t deliver the spending our forces need. So what did he say? He will set out how we’ll hit defence spending targets… next year. The can has been kicked down the road.

We also need the economy to grow if living standards are going to improve. The independent assessment in the aftermath of the Budget has downgraded growth to just 1%. Tax will be higher by 2030 than anytime after the Second World War. It is more and more difficult to start a business and make money from it. Following millions of investment from the previous Conservative Government, growth plans for areas like Gosport rely on a business friendly environment. Local jobs and opportunity depend on it.

It’s welcome that the Government raised the threshold at which retail, leisure, and hospitality businesses pay business rates. But if you zoom out for a second, the combination of employment red tape and higher taxes introduced by Keir Starmer mean they are still worse off than they were two years ago.

And on the rising cost of living which is impacting household budgets across our communities? £100 towards energy bills for households in Band A-D. With energy bills set to rise by up to 27% in January that feels like cold comfort. The Conservatives’ Cheap Power Plan would save families double that.

What about welfare spending? Well that is going up by £60 BILLION over the course of this Parliament, soaking up 11% of the country’s entire economic output.

We desperately needed the Chancellor to make tough choices and cut welfare spending so we can drive growth, fund defence and support households with the cost of living. He delivered a discount on tins of beans and gherkins.

Andy Burnham came into power promising to be radical. Now people are asking, beyond the vibes, is he radically different to Keir Starmer?