PC 11: Budget

[CWard]

The Leader of the Opposition talked about the definition of insanity in his speech. I think it’s insanity to return to boom and bust economics of the past and believe that this time we will have different results. We don’t need the tax slash and burn policies of the Tories. Nor do we need to raid the country’s coffers for runaway spending as the Lib Dems have advocated for. Rather we are keeping the fiscal policy of this country steady and solid moving forward. Surpluses don’t mean you raid the bank account. We wouldn’t do that at our kitchens tables, and we shouldn’t do it with the accounts of the Country. It rather means that the current pathway is right and we keep the path and make smart investments. That’s what this budget does.

[Will Frost]

Mr. Ward highlights the inherent inconsistency in the Government's argument. On one hand, the Chancellor is saying that the British people should be proud of the massive investment they're providing to public services, and on the other he suddenly changes his tune and says he's being fiscally responsible and prudent with national spending. He just can't have it both ways. The Government is clearly willing to spend massive sums of money, they're just not willing to do it on real tax cuts that will allow working people and families to keep more of what they earn. The Conservative Party is committed to doing more than piecemeal tax changes, because we believe in a wholesale change in policy that will see the British people being given back the money that has been taken from them by the Government. Only then will we be able to continually creative the wealth needed to invest in our incredible public services like the NHS, our schools, and the police. Comprehensive reductions to the tax burden, real cuts to income and corporation tax rates, is a long term plan for economic success and the proper funding of our public services.

[Amelia Lockhart]

The Chancellor said this Budget is about responsible investment. Rather than slashing our surplus and risking future funding, the Budget increases investment sustainably and for the long-term. We will invest £200 million extra in the railways, including £20 million for a New Stations Fund to improve the accessibility of the network and encourage regional growth. While the opposition wants the Government to take a boom and bust approach to investment, Labour is taking the prudent approach that will deliver an improved transport system for the British public.

[Rebecca Flair]

There is nothing desirable about hoarding a surplus when the global economy is slowing down. While I welcome many of Labour's investments they are simply not large or ambitious enough to bring our economy back up to temperature after this year's slowdown. The Government may be content to wait and see but I personally don't think we should take those risks with our constituents' livelihoods.

[Andy Edwards]

One of the items in the Government's budget that I'm particularly proud of is the provisions setting aside funds that would help us continue to implement the recommendations from the Macpherson report on policing. Despite some sensitivities from a certain side about the contents of this report, there's no question that better training for our officers and better engagement with minority communities can make this country safer and better off.

I look forward to the funding that will allow us to tackle injustices that minority communities in Britain feel with this Government's budget. This will help us live up to what we have been called to do in the Macpherson report- the kinds of things that even the police agree are needed to bring about positive change in policing and in communities throughout the United Kingdom. And while that will certainly get attacked... it's an attack I'm willing to bear if it means that we can tackle injustice that is very real to so many today.

[Brown]

I was impressed with Sir Jack's press conference today where he made clear that this Government is committed to increasing our investment in public services, while also ensuring that we proceed with fiscal responsibility, being good stewards of the budget surplus that was built by the previous Labour Government. We must be mindful in this time of global recession of the need to not to be tempted by the extremes of austerity or of reckless spending that would leave Her Majesty's treasury with limited ammunition to address the global recession and to responsibly continue increasing our commitment to fund public services. This is a budget that delivers a sound, fiscally responsible investment in the United Kingdom to ensure our prosperity for not only the year ahead, but also for years to come. I'm proud to be a part of a Government committed to good stewardship and running the nation's finances with prudence.

[Sir Jack Anderson]

It's been very easy for opposition politicians to look at the surplus and to forget, as a result, the massive investments we have put into our public services. This year alone, the NHS and education have received unprecedented sums of investment as a result of this government's budget.

It's easy to keep demanding more and more and more, more in tax cuts, more spending. But this government knows that gradual and sustainable investments work better than massive rushes of investment. While maintaining that fiscal responsibility, we've continued to invest healthy sums into our public services and reduce the tax burden on working people - something I am proud of.

[Will Frost]

In his budget press conference the Chancellor claimed that the Government wouldn't have the money to responsibly abolish tuition fees. What he isn't telling you is that the Government does have the money, the exact sum needed actually, they just chose to spend it on renationalizing prisons instead of abolishing tuition fees for our nation's students. It would cost £775 million to abolish tuition fees for good; which is exactly the same amount of money spent on the Government's scheme to take prisons out of private ownership. That is why I argue that this is a budget of missed opportunities - the Government had the resources to end tuition fees and empower our young people through a university education, and they made the conscious choice not to. The Conservative Party will, and in doing we will make clear our commitment to supporting students and ensuring that every individual has access to a university education no matter how much money their family has.

[Sir Jack Anderson]

I am not chasing good headlines - I am seeking to build a strong economy and to push for strong public finances. By prudently ensuring we invest more into our public services year on year, we do that.

It's irresponsible, during a time of growth, to throw us further and further towards a deficit and to engage in expansionary fiscal policy that could see more inflation and more boom and bust. Judging by William Croft's disastrous newsnight interview where he gave few answers at all, Labour's proposals would see less debt and a bigger surplus than the Liberal Democrats' and Conservatives' proposals. That isn't just more money hoarded for myself personally as some would make out - that's less spent on interest payments that can go into public services, more fiscal legroom to respond to economic shocks in the future and a stronger economy where we finance our own spending. It often means making difficult choices of having to say no, but it makes for a stronger economy and I am proud of it.

[Andy Edwards]

It has been estimated that reoffending has a financial cost of £11 billion annually, though the human cost in terms of new victims where there shouldn't be any is incalculable. This Government is very concerned about reoffending rates and about doing what we can to keep people from offending again- and that's why we've taken the responsible step to greatly increase the budget for rehabilitation programs. By focusing on opportunities to help those who have offended through education, through job training, and through support we can cut down on reoffending- not only saving money down the line but also preventing the creation of new victims of crime.

By investing £500 million in rehabilitation programs now, we can cut back on crimes committed in the future by reoffenders. This Government is putting more into that than any previous Government- and the results will be safer streets for all. I'm particularly disappointed that the Opposition has decided this is too much and would rather keep these programs small while hiring more officers. If we want safe streets, if we want communities that are protected, we'll get a huge return on helping ensure people don't reoffend at all. That's why this budget is important: it's making investments in the right areas that will lead to real results.