Labour’s first Budget misses the mark – Liberal Democrats

30th October 2024

The Labour Government’s first Budget missed the mark on 4 vital areas, according to local Liberal Democrats. Commenting on the Budget, South Lanarkshire Council’s Liberal Democrat Group Leader Councillor Robert Brown said:

“First, the economy won’t grow strongly unless we repair our broken relationship with Europe, our nearest and biggest customer.

Second the elephant in the NHS waiting room is the crisis in social care. We need a long term plan to fund local care services properly – and the SNP Scottish Government need to help by scrapping their expensive and struggling proposed central takeover of care services here.

Thirdly, raising employer’s national insurance is a tax on jobs and high streets, and it will make the health and care crisis worse by hitting thousands of small care providers. Liberal Democrats have long argued that we should raise the necessary funds by reversing the Conservative tax cuts for the big banks and get the social media and tech giants to pay a bit more.

And fourth, there was the opportunity to look again at the Winter Fuel Payment and restore much needed help to many poorer pensioners. The books cannot be balanced on the backs of pensioners.

We have had years of chaos and decline under the Conservatives but the sense of hope, urgency and the promise of a fair deal will not be delivered by this Labour Budget."