Finance (No. 4) Bill

Debate between Alison McGovern and Fiona O'Donnell

Thursday 19th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Alison McGovern]

The great Bill Shankly once said that he was always surprised that people were surprised at surprises. In one sense it is surprising that Government Members seem to question the BBC and yet cannot intervene to tell me that it is wrong. As the BBC states, those affected will be

“a ‘middle-income’ range of…pensioners who will not get what they might have expected from the tax system.”

That is a very important point. Of course we are all concerned about the impact of the recession on the poorest, but there is another factor to consider. People on middle incomes, who might have had certain expectations about how they could live their life, are now being disappointed and do not know what is coming in the future.

People feel that one of the big problems with the Budget is that certain matters that were brushed over and not explained fully have subsequently come out as being pretty serious. The insecurity facing people at the moment, especially those in the middle of the income distribution, is really quite serious, not least because it is not very good for people’s quality of life if they are constantly worrying about what next year might bring financially. How they interact in the economy and their actions as consumers are also deeply affected by that insecurity.

One of the biggest challenges for Treasury Ministers to address is how communities such as I have mentioned in the Wirral and other parts of the country, where time after time Government announcements have chipped away at the money in the local economy, can deal with the insecurity facing people. The Budget will have a significant impact on people’s quality of life.

[Fiona O'Donnell]

My hon. Friend is making an excellent contribution. Does she agree that when we meet older people in our constituencies, it is inspiring to hear how concerned they are about young people’s future? However, what they see in the Government’s taking money from 40% of pensioners is not an effort to invest in creating jobs for young people. What really hurts is the fact that that money is being used to give a tax break to millionaires.

[Alison McGovern]

My hon. Friend is right. Of course, older people are worried about the next generation’s future, and they do not believe that the Government are making the right move, not least for the reasons that she gave.

I hope that Treasury Ministers will reconsider the proposal and their approach to local economic development. Economies are geographically centred, and businesses currently face, as I have said time and again, a chipping away of resources in their area. That makes growth extremely hard and I hope that Ministers will consider that.