Autumn Budget 2024

Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe Excerpts

Monday 11th November 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Warwick of Undercliffe (Lab)]

My Lords, the Chancellor’s mission to deliver sustained growth brings a sense of purpose that the country needs so desperately. Investment in the UK has to increase, and the Chancellor has provided a clear sense of policy and governance stability that is essential to attracting that investment.

I was rather encouraged by the response of the CBI which, while acknowledging that in the short term they would be tough on business, went on to commend the Budget changes that will provide a predictable tax environment and support business confidence. The Chancellor said that she wanted to turn the page on the last 14 years. In its integrated focus on growth and the improvement in public services, the Budget Statement rang a very welcome and optimistic bell about the way the Government will do that.

I will call out just a few of the elements in the Budget which contribute to my sense of optimism: the increase in the national living wage; the prospect of rebuilding the NHS and cutting waiting lists; preserving the pension triple lock; investing £40 million in a growth and skills levy to replace the struggling apprenticeship levy; increased investment in R&D and capital investment for skills; and the commitment to deliver a lifelong learning entitlement to expand access to high-quality flexible education and training for adults throughout their working lives. I congratulate my noble friend Lord Vallance on protecting tomorrow’s economic opportunities in a science settlement that was more positive than many feared.

It is clear that the Chancellor had to be both bold and make some hard choices if she is to deliver the necessary growth and national well-being for the country. I found it immensely encouraging that she is so focused on increased private sector and government investment in UK infrastructure and productive assets, underpinned by supporting the net-zero transition in the longer term.

I was also pleased that, within the tough choices the Chancellor had to make, there were some very welcome announcements in the Budget on social and affordable housing, including a £500 million top-up for the affordable homes programme to prevent a sharp fall in social housing delivery. The Government’s decision to review right-to-buy discounts was right—with record levels of overcrowding and child homelessness, it is vital that we protect our existing social homes.

Also very welcome is the additional funding and action to solve the building safety crisis. The shortage of housing, the decline in the percentage of working-age people owning their own home, people bearing mortgages till much later ages, and ever-increasing rents for those in the private sector, impacting in turn on their ability to save for a home, all combine to increase the crisis of securing a decent home for ordinary people.

A significant part of the Budget was the announcement of a new consultation on social rents. Social housing providers and local authorities have faced 15 years of funding cuts. The previous Labour Government introduced a convergence settlement that led the way to a fairer, more transparent system for settling rents. Reintroducing it would unlock additional financial capacity to invest in homes and services, while ensuring that tenants can afford their rents. Can the Minister set out the Government’s view? Will they reintroduce the policy?

It was brilliant to have the Chancellor commit to “invest, invest, invest” after such a long period of underinvesting. I appreciate some of this will, in part, be from tax rises, but I wanted to point out one consequence of the changes to NI contributions. Homeless and supported housing services are not-for-profit organisations, and those additional contributions will make a significant hit on their funds. One in three have already been forced to close in the last year. Will the Minister consider a rebate or relief for those providing these much-needed housing schemes, particularly at a time when rough sleeping is at record levels?

Housing policy affects so many aspects of public services. Social housing can bring down the benefits bill and end reliance on the temporary accommodation that is so costly to local authorities. Looking ahead to the spending review, will the Government commit to a comprehensive housing strategy alongside ambitious financial commitments to build more social housing?

I want to end with one other tough but necessary decision in the Budget: to inflation-proof tuition fees and maintenance loans for higher education students. Some 7,000 jobs in higher education institutions have been lost this year because of financial constraints on them, and this step is a starting point for finding a longer-term solution.