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Rt. Hon. Sir Alan Beith MPLiberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Berwick Upon TweedWorking for you and the Berwick upon Tweed Constituency all year roundin Northumberland and in Westminster |
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Budget Box all but empty, says Beith
March 11, 2008 4:00 PM
Berwick's Lib Dem MP Alan Beith has slammed the Chancellor's first Budget, saying it offers nothing to help our poorest families in the north east.
Alan Beith said
"The Chancellor's Budget Box is nearly empty and he has offered nothing to help families or the elderly with increasing energy and food costs. This is the budget when the Government gave up on its 2010 child poverty target. By their own calculations it will be putting only an additional £1bn into combating child poverty around the UK, £2.5bn less than is needed to meet its target.
"This was also a golden opportunity for the Brown-Darling team to tackle persistent inequality caused by the Barnett formula, which means that more money is available in Scotland for public services than here in the north east.
"The only big winner from this budget is the Government; by 2010 they will be keeping an extra £1.86bn for themselves."
Mr Beith also condemned the Government's lack of commitment to improving transport links in the north east.
"The effect of London's Crossrail arrangement is to give Scotland another half a billion pounds to spend as it chooses, but nothing comes to the north east. The Chancellor is crowing about Crossrail and other transport projects but singularly fails to give a single case of better transport here .
"The Crossrail example clearly shows how we are missing out yet again because of the Barnett formula, which even Professor Barnett has said should be scrapped."
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