She denied lying about the state of the public finances to justify tax rises that were not necessary. Ms Reeves still has questions to answer about the manipulation of opinion in the run-up to last Wednesday’s statement.
|  | All the times Reeves falsely claimed there was a Budget black holeChancellor said Britain faced a £30bn shortfall in finances. Here is what was really happening |
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However, the accusation of misleading implies that the country is in reasonable fiscal health, when that is far from the case.
The central lie at the heart of this exercise is not whether there was sufficient “headroom” as defined by the Office for Budget Responsibility.
It is the refusal to acknowledge that we cannot go on increasing the size of the welfare state and encourage economic growth at the same time.
Without higher revenues, if we want to spend more on welfare the money has to come from taxes or borrowing. Since we spend more than £100bn a year just servicing the debt already accumulated, taxes have to rise instead. The other option, cutting spending, has been rejected by this Government.
Indeed, Ms Reeves is unapologetic about that. Her choices – “Labour choices” as Sir Keir Starmer called them – involve spending £16bn more on benefits by the end of the decade than expected.
Just a few months ago, the Government was adamant that the welfare bill was unsustainable, yet it is doing nothing to lower it. All we have been promised is another review, to be carried out by former minister Alan Milburn. Sir Keir will make yet another speech on Monday about fixing welfare yet everyone knows the parliamentary party will not allow any cuts, as was seen with the rebellion over personal independence payments. Facing threats from the Greens, Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party and Reform, there is simply no way Labour will seriously get to grips with this spending.
| | It’s Your Party – and if they have their way we’ll soon all want to cryThe Corbynistas may have fallen out with the Sultanas, but that up to 12 per cent back this crew is frightening ... |
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Taxpayers see their hard-earned money splurged on welfare while businesses are disincentivised from taking on new employees.
A courageous government would acknowledge that the levels of spending are too high and devise a plan to bring them down. But yet again we have seen Labour opt for the easy route to placate its own client state and impoverish the rest of us.
Ms Reeves may be proud of her Budget. The country will deliver a far more brutal verdict when next given the chance. DT.
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She denied lying about the state of the public finances to justify tax rises that were not necessary. Ms Reeves still has questions to answer about the manipulation of opinion in the run-up to last Wednesday’s statement.
All the times Reeves falsely claimed there was a Budget black hole
Chancellor said Britain faced a £30bn shortfall in finances. Here is what was really happening
The central lie at the heart of this exercise is not whether there was sufficient “headroom” as defined by the Office for Budget Responsibility.
It is the refusal to acknowledge that we cannot go on increasing the size of the welfare state and encourage economic growth at the same time.
Without higher revenues, if we want to spend more on welfare the money has to come from taxes or borrowing. Since we spend more than £100bn a year just servicing the debt already accumulated, taxes have to rise instead. The other option, cutting spending, has been rejected by this Government.
Indeed, Ms Reeves is unapologetic about that. Her choices – “Labour choices” as Sir Keir Starmer called them – involve spending £16bn more on benefits by the end of the decade than expected.
Just a few months ago, the Government was adamant that the welfare bill was unsustainable, yet it is doing nothing to lower it. All we have been promised is another review, to be carried out by former minister Alan Milburn. Sir Keir will make yet another speech on Monday about fixing welfare yet everyone knows the parliamentary party will not allow any cuts, as was seen with the rebellion over personal independence payments. Facing threats from the Greens, Jeremy Corbyn’s Your Party and Reform, there is simply no way Labour will seriously get to grips with this spending.
It’s Your Party – and if they have their way we’ll soon all want to cry
The Corbynistas may have fallen out with the Sultanas, but that up to 12 per cent back this crew is frightening ...
A courageous government would acknowledge that the levels of spending are too high and devise a plan to bring them down. But yet again we have seen Labour opt for the easy route to placate its own client state and impoverish the rest of us.
Ms Reeves may be proud of her Budget. The country will deliver a far more brutal verdict when next given the chance. DT.