Derek Deedman

Commenting on the pre-budget report and Comprehensive Spending Review, Liberal Democrat Shadow Chancellor and Deputy Leader, Vince Cable MP said:

“Today’s announcement of falling growth and the tightest spending round in a decade is the result of ten years of neglect by Gordon Brown.

“For too long The Prime Minister callously disregarded the mounting problem of personal debt, fuelled by irresponsible lending.

“With households now facing 160% income to debt ratios and spending a fifth of their income servicing existing debts, it has become inevitable that spending and growth will fall.”

Commenting on the Chancellor’s tax proposals Dr Cable said:

“The Liberal Democrats have long called for action on non-domiciled individuals and welcome any proposal which ensures they pay their fair share of tax.

“However, it is peculiar that after criticising the Conservatives for an unworkable charge on non-doms, the Chancellor has opted for the exact same thing. Surely it makes greater sense to tax these individuals as UK citizens after a set period of time.

“Today’s Inheritance Tax proposals will be a great relief to many married couples who wish to transfer their house to their children. However this does nothing for the many families who have separated or chose not to enter into a marriage or civil partnership.”

Commenting on the Chancellor’s spending proposals, Dr Cable said:

“With a crushing spending squeeze on local government it seems inevitable that Council Tax will rise by as much as 5% each year. This will mean that Council Tax will have more than doubled since Labour came to power.

“This unfair tax must be abolished and replaced with a tax based on an individual’s ability to pay.

“Health spending growth is halving and doesn’t even reach the 4.4% requirement recommended by Sir Derek Wanless of the minimum amount of spending necessary to improve health services.

“This announcement was intended to be a statement of political bribery, but with no election it has had to pay heed to economic reality; with an economy heading for turmoil and a squeeze on spending which will damage our public services.

“The Government has ducked the tough choices which needed to be made on public spending, rather than cutting wasteful projects such as ID cards, Child Trust Funds and the NHS IT Scheme and reallocating the money saved to front line public services.” 

Commenting on the Environment proposals, Chris Huhne, Shadow Environment Secretary said:

“The change in the basis of air taxes from passengers to flights is a step in the right direction as it will encourage airlines to fly full. Liberal Democrats have argued for an emissions-based tax since 2004.

“Any notion that Gordon Brown has gone green will be dispelled by the failure of the Defra budget to even keep pace with the projected growth of the economy, despite a crying need for flood defences and energy-saving measures.

“Given the appalling floods in the summer, this is a settlement for Defra and the Environment Agency that reeks of false economies which future flood victims will bitterly regret. It also risks provoking the insurance companies into reviewing their long-standing commitment to provide cover.

“The energy-saving measures at home are also feeble, as there is only a commitment to a cash rise for low-income households, which will not keep up with inflation. With each UK household spending £385 a year more on average than a Swedish household on energy, this is complete folly.

“The commitment to an environmental transformation fund and other pledges are offset by £379 million a year of efficiency savings that have not yet been identified. This is a triumph of hope over experience and may lead to a further substantial squeeze on Defra’s budget.” 

Commenting on the NHS proposals, Norman Lamb, Shadow Health Secretary, said:

 ”Despite years of rising investment, the NHS has still managed to rack up nationwide debts and cut jobs, all while health inequality widened.

 ”The Government’s poor record on health spending doesn’t exactly inspire confidence that things will improve in the NHS.

 ”With less extra money coming in, the Government cannot afford to continue wasting it on centralised bureaucracy and contradictory reform.

 ”How much of this money will actually reach the front line of patient care?

 ”There is still no answer to the mess over funding of elderly care. The Government has failed to address the terrible unfairness of people losing everything as result of personal care costs.”