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Rachel Reeves will pledge to put “more pounds in people’s pockets” when she announces her first Budget on Wednesday.
After months of warning the public of the “tough choices” ahead, Ms Reeves is expected to promise to “invest, invest, invest” in order to “fix public services”.
Reeves is expected to say in her speech today: “My belief in Britain burns brighter than ever. And the prize on offer to today is immense.
“More pounds in people’s pockets. An NHS that is there when you need it. An economy that is growing, creating wealth and opportunity for all. Because that is the only way to improve living standards.
“And the only way to drive economic growth is to invest, invest, invest. There are no short cuts. To deliver that investment we must restore economic stability.”
The minimum wage will increase to £12.21, the Treasury revealed on Tuesday evening.
Ms Reeves has described the 6.7 per cent increase as a “significant step” towards creating a “genuine living wage for working people” – although it falls short of the £12.60 an hour sum recommended by the Living Wage Foundation.
Full report: Rachel Reeves pledges to ‘invest, invest, invest’ as she prepares to unveil historic Labour Budget
In what is expected to be a Budget of record-breaking tax rises involving “tough choices” to “fix public services”, Ms Reeves will hold out some hope with a rallying cry that she intends to “invest, invest, invest” to turn the country around.
The rhetoric appears to deliberately echo Tony Blair’s three priorities of “education, education, education” ahead of the 1997 election as Ms Reeves attempts to grasp the optimism of his New Labour government in what is widely expected to be a gloomy Budget.
The Independent’s Political Editor David Maddox reports:
‘Serious concern’ among small business owners about Budget tax rises
Small business owners are “seriously concerned” by the possibility of tax rises in the Budget on Wednesday.
Some fear they will need to cut their employee headcount, including paraplanning business owner Steve Luke, 56.
“I’m seriously concerned that if the Budget is as bad as I’m expecting then we may have to reduce the workforce from nine to seven or eight,” he told PA.
Mr Luke says he is concerned the government will not view him as a “working person” in the Budget, as he takes a small salary from the business while also paying himself a dividend due to fluctuating income.
Farmer and landlord Richard Payne, 61, who owns around 500 acres of land and rents 150-200 acres for wheat, barley, oilseed rape and canola farming, says he is “extremely nervous”.
“Whilst I’m probably not going to be clobbered hard on national insurance contributions, because we don’t employ a huge number of people… I’m more worried about taxation on profit, if we make any, and also, in my case, losing agricultural property leave or business property relief on our assets,” he said.
Joy Francis, 76, the owner of two nurseries and employer of 22 people, fears the increase on employer’s national insurance contributions.
“(The Government) just doesn’t seem to grasp the concept of small businesses being the backbone of the economy and we’re not all money-grabbing people with shareholders to pay.”
Chancellor must fund Scotland “immediately and significantly”, John Swinney says
Funding for Scotland must increase “immediately and significantly” in Wednesday’s budget, first minister John Swinney has said.
At a reception for business leaders on Tuesday, Mr Swinney said: “The Office for Budget Responsibility highlighted recently the potential for public investment to deliver permanent improvements in the economy.
“It is welcome that my calls for the Chancellor to amend her fiscal rules have been heard, with indications last week that there will be scope for greater investment.
“The Chancellor has the chance to choose to deliver a UK Budget that invests in our public services and supports the entrepreneurial spirit displayed in Scotland’s business sector.
“With these new rules in place, the Chancellor must use the fiscal headroom they create to deliver a Budget that immediately and significantly enhances Scotland’s resource and capital funding, enabling us to invest more in our public services and take forward the vital infrastructure projects that support economic growth, net zero, and action to tackle child poverty.”
The Scottish government recently made more than £500 million of in-year cuts, with Scotland’s finances in significant difficulty.
Mr Swinney has also called for an Acorn carbon capture and storage facility in the north east of Scotland to be funded after it was overlooked twice by successive UK governments.
Daily Record: Axe 2-child cap if you want to help kids
Scottish first minister John Swinney has called on Rachel Reeves to use the Budget to scrap the two-child benefit limit, the Daily Record reports.
Financial Times: UK borrowing costs hit post-election record on eve of Reeves’ first Budget
The Financial Times reports that UK borrowing costs have hit a post-election record.
The markets are readying themselves for a tax hit as new borrowing is expected to top £20 billion, the FT says.
The Times: Budget rises and workers’ rights add up to ‘perfect storm’ for businesses
Businesses leaders have warned the government that more taxes, higher wage bills and the overhaul on workers rights will create the “perfect storm”, The Times reports.
Morning Star: Glum and Glummer
The Morning Star leads on Rachel Reeves’ “Horror Halloween Budget”, adding that the government “struggles to move on from its misery messaging”.
Ms Reeves warned that Wednesday’s budget won’t be enough to fix the NHS, the paper reports.
The Guardian: Chancellor hails 6.7% minimum wage rise
The Guardian’s front page leads with Rachel Reeves’ 6.7 per cent increase on the National Living Wage – otherwise known as the minimum wage.
The increase will see the hourly rate increase to £12.21, amounting to an extra £1,400 annually for those on the lowest income.
Every way Labour has defined ‘working people’ ahead of the Budget
There’s no tax rise that can avoid everyone’s pockets, but with around 50 per cent of UK citizens considering themselves working-class, Labour has been pressed to clarify who falls under the party’s definition.
Read what Labour ministers have said here:
I’ll put more pounds in people’s pockets – Reeves
Rachel Reeves will pledge to put “more pounds in people’s pockets” when she stands at the dispatch box for the first Labour budget since March 2010.
It comes despite repeated warnings of tough decisions ahead as she looks to fix the NHS and grow the economy through a series of tax hikes and borrowing increases.
The “prize on offer” for Labour’s plans is “immense”, Ms Reeves is expected to tell MPs in her speech tomorrow. She added that there are “no shortcuts” to driving the economic growth Labour has promised.
Reeves is expected to say in her speech: “My belief in Britain burns brighter than ever. And the prize on offer to today is immense.
“More pounds in people’s pockets. An NHS that is there when you need it. An economy that is growing, creating wealth and opportunity for all. Because that is the only way to improve living standards.
“And the only way to drive economic growth is to invest, invest, invest. There are no shortcuts. To deliver that investment we must restore economic stability.”
