Greens speak out on Hunt's Failed Opportunity
The chancellor's autumn statement was another failed opportunity to end the cost-of-living crisis, tackle the climate crisis and restore our crumbling public services.
The Conservatives £20bn tax cuts will be funded by more austerity and more reductions in public services. They will reward the richest while cracking down on benefit claims and the most vulnerable people in society. And they will once again postpone the radical policies needed to tackle climate change.
Tax cut bribes
Green co-leader Carla Denyer condemned the announcement:
“The government has chosen headline-grabbing pre-election tax cut bribes over doing their job properly - providing good public services and protecting citizens from harm caused by the cost-of-living crisis and the climate crisis.
"Indeed, this was a particularly cruel statement for the long-term sick and some disabled people who will now be forced into work or lose their benefits.
"People won’t be fooled by a few extra quid in their pay packet when they can’t get a dentist, the wait to see the GP is getting ever longer, and the impacts of the climate crisis are becoming ever more obvious and close to home.
“The government is fishing for a day’s worth of General Election friendly headlines at high long-term costs to public services, people’s quality of life and the environment"
The Green Party's 10 point plan
The Green Party has a 10-point plan of distinctive tax and spend policies to create a fairer, greener country:
- Restoring the public health budget by increasing spending by £1.4 billion
- Immediately increasing NHS spending by £8 billion, to ensure NHS staff can be paid an inflation matching pay award
- Meeting the Government’s current plan to increase access to NHS dentists by increasing spending 50 per cent - £1.5 billion - of the total NHS dentistry budget
- Ending the rise in homelessness caused by the cap on Local Housing Allowances at a cost of £700 million
- Increasing Universal Credit by £40 per week at a cost of £9bn
- Abolishing the two-child benefit cap to reduce poverty for some of the most vulnerable children in the country by increasing the welfare budget by £1.3 billion
- Providing the necessary powers and funding to rural local authorities to take back control of bus services so they can increase routes and service frequencies at a cost of £3bn
- Turning ISAs green by linking their tax exemptions to investments in green bonds
- Investing an additional £3billion in Green Transition Grants for small businesses to help them prepare for and take advantage of the opportunities offered by greening the economy
- Rebalancing the tax system to raise an extra £30 billion through changes to Capital Gains Tax, National Insurance and the abolition of “non dom status” which would pay for the proposed measures
The needs of people and the planet
Carla continued, “The country cannot afford pre-election tax cut bribes from this failed Tory government. They mean postponing, yet again, the action we need to tackle the climate crisis – action that would create new, secure, well-paid green jobs.
“Living in a decent society means investing in public services that meet the needs of people and planet. We can afford better public services. We can protect the environment and the most vulnerable in society, keep people warm and lift people out of poverty.
..and one more thing Jeremy. About inflation...
Meanwhile the chancellor Jeremy Hunt, the tireless warrior against inflation that he is, has been doing his personal bit to make it worse.
The fine folk at Led By Donkeys have discovered that Mr Hunt owns some flats in Southampton and part of his anti inflation strategy has been to put the rent up by 18%! That's really tackling the cost of living crisis.
See the Led By Donkeys investigation here
