Autumn Statement

Ian C. Lucas Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

First, may I say that I know the Royal Shakespeare Company does a brilliant job? We were able to help it earlier this year with support for touring around the world. Such people are looking at the theatre tax break and at what they can do to use it. I hope that the orchestra tax break is of help to the Orchestra of the Swan, which my hon. Friend mentioned.

On savers, I have announced today that people can pass on their ISAs to their spouse tax free. That major step forward in the ISAs regime comes on top of the increase to £15,000 for the new ISA and, of course, the new freedoms on pensions.

[Ian Lucas (Wrexham) (Lab)]

One thing the Chancellor did deliver in 2010 was an increase in VAT. Can he explain the difference between his statement in 2010 that he had no plans to increase VAT and his statement last weekend that he has no plans to increase VAT?

[Mr Osborne]

The plans that I have set out involve spending reductions and welfare reductions. By the way, the Labour party is the first to attack me for them. People have seen the decisions and the approach that we have taken on spending. We will go on reducing spending and reducing welfare, and we do not need tax increases.

As I remarked in my exchange with the right hon. Member for Edinburgh South West (Mr Darling), the previous Labour Chancellor planned to increase VAT after the general election—he put that in his memoirs—and those of us who were in that Parliament will remember that the Labour Treasury produced, by mistake, a document that said VAT would go up, which caused the Government great embarrassment at the time. As I say, our plans involve spending reductions and welfare reductions, and that is what we are committed to do.