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MP Robert Halfon praises Chancellor’s Spring Budget which “further tackles the cost of living and supports people back into work”

General / Thu 16th Mar 2023 at 04:35pm

“In January, the Prime Minister set out his key pledges to halve inflation, reduce our debt and grow the economy; today’s Budget does just that. 

“By taking difficult decisions to stabilise the economy, meaning that official forecasts now predict inflation will fall by more than half to 2.9%, the announcements made today will mark the next phase of our plan – growth. 

“Harlow residents know that I have always campaigned to cut the cost of living, deliver stronger public services and champion education and skills. This is why I am proud to support the Chancellor and this Conservative Government who are delivering on Harlow people’s priorities:

  1. Cutting the cost of living 

The energy bill support package which caps energy bills at £2,500 will be extended for a further three months. This will save the average Harlow household a further £160 over the next three months on top of the £3,300 savings made by households from previous Government support.

  1. Building an even better Harlow

An additional £200 million has been allocated to support Local Authorities to fill potholes and fix our roads. This equals over £5 million more for Essex as well as the £9 million extra which has already been invested by Essex County Council. 

  1. Maintaining the 5p Fuel Duty Cut

Harlow drivers will save another £100 this year through the Government’s actions to keep the 5p fuel duty cut in place for another twelve months. This comes alongside the £200 they have already saved since the 5p cut was introduced last year.

  1. Expanding free childcare

The Government will provide 30 hours of free childcare for 1 and 2 year olds which will reduce costs by 60% and allow families to save around £6,500 every year. Childcare costs for Universal Credit claimants will also be paid upfront, helping with household budgets and encouraging more people back into work. 

  1. Boosting education, skills and apprenticeships

The introduction of new ‘Returnships’ and mid-life MOTs will help experienced workers who are over-fifty to stay in or return to work. These will be supported with Skills Bootcamps and our new Lifelong Learning Entitlement to help people access new skills and training opportunities. 

“The measures announced today will go a long way to support Harlow residents in their daily lives. Coupled with the hundreds of millions of pounds worth of investment into the town, the £45 million I have worked hard to secure will regenerate our Town Centre, making it the best place to live, work and grow up. 

“Today’s Budget is a growth plan that supports Harlow’s families, businesses and households to truly deliver a better future for the next generation and help achieve my pledge to every Harlow resident to build an even better Harlow.”

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4 Comments for MP Robert Halfon praises Chancellor’s Spring Budget which “further tackles the cost of living and supports people back into work”:

Terry Kirkby
2023-03-16 17:27:01

Robert one of the budget measures help people back to work in fact the opposite im afraid! The pension help is for people with £1million pensions (not many in Harlow) The free child care is not starting until 2024 and 2025! (they want the help now) The energy cap is only required as the government has allowed the energy companies to make astronomical profits at the workers expense! ( Blame Russia Not) Tax bands frozen and as a result more people after wage rises exceed the tax threshold resulting in more tax for the Government coffers! Fuel duty frozen! the government already take £1.15 out of every litre for tax so so I don't feel the government is losing much do you! The government has given nothing i'm afraid to the general workers and I do hope there is a change at next election and the newly built homes being offered to our friends form abroad are offered to the true desperate people around this town! and the government pays the rent like they do for our visitors

Mark Ingall
2023-03-16 21:02:08

Didn't Halfon also praise KamiKwasi's budget that cost the country £60 billion?

Bruce Downey
2023-03-16 22:06:53

Anything that puts pressure on the feckless to get a job is a good thing..👍

David Forman
2023-03-17 09:15:12

The Tories drive for improved workforce productivity has not materialized. The OBR report on page 7 says: "Productivity has grown at less than half its pre-financial crisis rate since 2010 and has been disrupted more recently by the pandemic and higher cost of energy." The Tories solution to this in the short term is importing more foreign workers. The OBR says on page 28: "projections for total net inward migration, which we now expect to total 1.6 million cumulatively over the forecast (up from 1.3 million in November and 0.8 million in March 2022). Net migration flows settle at 245,000 a year, rather than the 205,000 assumed in our November forecast and 129,000 in our March 2022 forecast. Higher forecast levels of inward migration are also consistent with relatively high recent rates of actual net migration, which the ONS estimates reached over half a million in the year to mid-2022." Whatever happened to the Tories pledge of reducing net migration to the tens of thousands? So why the big fuss about the refugees coming in the backdoor on rubber boats when the Tories are happy for hundreds of thousands coming in the front door? The answer is that immigration is good for the economy and big business wants healthy, well educated and productive workers. To distract the working class from their broken promises the Tories scapegoat the refugees. A cynical policy using the old magician's trick of distraction. See migrant pledge at: https://amp.theguardian.com/politics/2022/oct/04/suella-braverman-revives-tory-pledge-to-cut-net-migration-to-tens-of-thousands See Office of Budget Responsibility report: https://obr.uk/download/economic-and-fiscal-outlook-march-2023/?tmstv=1678922094

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