Budget Resolutions

Margaret Ferrier Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Margaret Ferrier (Rutherglen and Hamilton West) (Ind)]

I am pleased to be able to speak to some of the ways in which this Budget will impact on my constituents in Rutherglen and Hamilton West. The Chancellor made some welcome announcements last week, and I would like to acknowledge them. They include the increased funding for Scotland, some aspects of the changes to the universal credit taper rate and raising the national living wage. Unfortunately, though, it is yet again the most vulnerable in society who will be feeling the deepest cuts.

The changes to the universal credit taper rate provide some support for claimants who are working and in a position to increase their working hours, but this does not make up for the removal of the £20 a week uplift, which was a lifeline for millions across the UK. Like many colleagues, I wrote to the Government several times about the uplift, and on Friday I received a response to a letter that I had sent 17 weeks earlier on 8 July, advising me that no impact assessment had been made of what that cut would mean to millions of people. Will the Chancellor instruct his officials to make that assessment now, so that we can see how it tallies up with the taper rate changes?

The change helps only a portion of claimants, so what is being done for those who cannot work, for reasons outwith their control? What about the single parents whose childcare does not stretch far enough for them to increase their hours? What about those on zero-hours contracts whose income is dependent on the whims of their employers, or those whose disabilities prevent them from working, either altogether or more hours? This is just a small sample of the situations that our constituents can find themselves in and that become barriers to work. They are no more immune to the rise in inflation and the cost of living than the rest of us.

Likewise, the rise in the national living wage is welcome, but why is it only for those over the age of 23? How much of that money will really see the inside of people’s pockets? The Chancellor made a clever decision when he announced the health and social care levy in September, negating the need for it to be included in his Budget. That will certainly eat into any gains that the wage increase provides, and in Scotland, while income tax levels are set differently from England’s, for most that will mean an additional percentage point deducted from their income. So when we consider rising inflation, additional taxes and mounting energy costs, for those in my constituency this is not the generous gift that the Chancellor would have us believe. It is less than the bare minimum he could have provided.

Speaking of energy costs, I was disappointed that no relief was offered by the Government as we move into what will undoubtedly be a long and difficult winter. It was anticipated that we would hear that VAT would be reduced on household energy bills—a move that it was in the Government’s gift to provide. Mounting costs, coupled with suppliers going bust, make this an issue that I am contacted about regularly. The VAT charged on household bills is money that goes to the Treasury, not the suppliers. I was unsurprised on Friday to read that Ofgem will be reviewing the current price cap

“to ensure that it appropriately reflects the costs, risks and uncertainties facing suppliers.”

Can we correctly assume that this will see another historic rise in prices? Will the Chancellor commit now to ensuring that any rise does not push people further into poverty?

It is not just households that are facing unaffordable energy costs. Last month, I was contacted by a constituent who owns a much-loved business in the constituency. It is so well-established that next year will mark its centenary, but my constituent is worried that the celebrations will be marred by the greatest financial risk to the company in his lifetime. He is just had to renew his energy contract, which is not capped for businesses, unlike those for households. The contract he has had to sign increases his energy bill by around £30,000 a year—a 500% mark- up—and the out-of-contract costs are even higher. What support is the Chancellor going to provide for small, family-owned businesses like that of my constituent, to ensure that they do not have to close their doors or let staff go just to keep the lights on?

I am grateful to the Chancellor for coming to the House and setting out his Budget. It is not an easy job, and it is one that I am sure most of us do not envy, but for my constituents there are still outstanding questions that desperately need answers, which I hope he will be able to give.