Zöe Franklin: “Yesterday's Budget was the Conservative Government’s opportunity to start to fix their mess. They failed.”

We are facing the worst fall in living standards since records began. The Government's own watchdog, the OBR*, says living standards are expected to fall by 6% this year and next year, as inflation continues to outstrip growth. That's the biggest two-year fall since records began in 1956.

Speaking after the Chancellor's budget announcement Zöe Franklin, Guildford's Liberal Democrat Parliamentary Candidate, said "As I'm out speaking to people in Guildford every week, the main issues that they want to discuss are their concerns and fears about the cost of living crisis. They want real help on energy bills, the rising price of food and rent and mortgage costs.

"They also tell me how worried they are about the NHS, that they want to be able to get appointments with their GP, to know an ambulance will turn up when it's needed and not to be waiting months or years for surgery.

"There was nothing in this budget to address any of these problems. Nothing to address the pay crisis facing nurses, doctors, teachers and other valued public sector workers.

"Even the Chancellor's u-turn on the energy price guarantee doesn't address the problems of all those struggling to pay their bills. It delays the rise in bills we were expecting in April but comes as the energy bill support payment ends, that's another £67 more a month we'll have to find.

"Amid this failure to provide real support for people who are struggling, the Chancellor did manage to find a way to scrap the lifetime pension allowance. However, the average person saves £40k in their pension, nowhere near £1m, so many will be asking how does this help me? How does it make my life better?

"It is clear that the Conservative Government is out of touch and has no idea how to fix the continuing cost of living crisis. The people of Guildford and the UK deserve better. The Liberal Democrats are calling for a reduction in the Energy Price Guarantee to £1,971 to cut people's energy bills by £500; a proper windfall tax in place so that oil and gas giants pay their fair share; and the introduction of a Mortgage Protection Fund and support for renters so that no one has to lose their home this year."

16th March 2023

Notes:

Office For Budget Responsibility; The Economy Forecast - https://obr.uk/box/the-outlook-for-household-income-and-consumption/

Nationally, the Liberal Democrats have set out their plan to tackle the energy crisis including:

• A windfall tax on oil and gas companies to raise billions of pounds
• Cutting the Energy Price Guarantee by £500 to £1,971 - the same level as they were last April
• A one-off bonus tax on oil and gas executives
• Doubling the Warm Homes Discount to £300 and the Winter Fuel Payment
• A U-turn on plans to slash energy bill support for businesses, leisure centres, schools and hospitals by 85%, and instead extend current levels of support for another six months