MP Says Budget Tough But Fair

Tamworth’s MP, Christopher Pincher, has described the budget announced by Chancellor George Osborne on Tuesday as “tough but fair” in dealing decisively with the record deficit left behind by Labour.

Mr Pincher said:

“Labour left behind one of the largest budget deficits in Europe.  Thanks to their incompetence and negligence, we are now borrowing one pound for every four we spend.  That means our national debt is increasing by £3billion every week.  We cannot continue such a borrowing binge.  If we do not act to tackle it, then in a few years we will be paying £70billion in interest payments alone – that is more than we spend on our schools or on our defences.”

“I am glad that the Chancellor has sought to protect the less well off from being punished by Labour’s legacy.  Ordinary families and pensioners in Tamworth will see their take home pay rise as their tax thresholds increase whilst their outgoings will be held down by the freeze in council tax.  What is more, re-linking pensions to earnings as we promised will make pensioners better off.”

“The VAT increase is not going to be easy.  But we need to be clear – this was not something the government wanted to do; it was something Labour’s awful legacy made unavoidable.  I hope we can get the VAT figure down as soon as possible.”

“I am pleased the Chancellor was able to help small businesses by announcements on Corporation Tax and Employers’ National Insurance.  We need to help small businesses in Tamworth which are the engines of growth and the creators of jobs and prosperity.”

“We need to focus hard now on helping businesses and people get back on their feet.  We need to get Britain working, and that is what I think this budget will help to achieve.”