MPs from both sides of the house have called on the chancellor to do more to tackle the cost of living crisis.
Earlier today, Rishi Sunak cut 5p off a litre of fuel, and raised the National Insurance threshold to £12,750 as part of his spring statement.
While there was a move to zero rate VAT on some renewable energy products, there were no new announcements on helping people meet the soaring cost of gas and electricity.
There was also no announcement of support for pensioners or those on universal credit, although local authorities will receive a share of a fund aimed at supporting those who need it.
Delivering the Spring Statement, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “This statement puts billions back into the pockets of people across the UK and delivers the biggest net cut to personal taxes in over a quarter of a century.
“Like our actions against Russia, I have been able to do this because of our strong economy and the difficult but responsible decisions I have had to make to rebuild our finances following the pandemic.
“Cutting taxes means people have immediate help with the rising cost of living, businesses have better conditions to invest and grow tomorrow, and people keep more of what they earn for years to come.”
But politicians from across the house disagreed.
Reading East MP Matt Rodda, who is Labour’s shadow minister for pensions, was disappointed with the statement.
“Despite the Chancellor’s announcement, residents face a cost of living crisis and taxes are at their highest level for 70 years,” he said.
“Labour would offer real help to our whole community by cutting VAT on energy bills with targeted financial support and insulation for those in greatest need, which would be worth £600.
“Both working people and pensioners would benefit.”
And Conservative MP Sir John Redwood tweeted: “The Treasury found £105bn it was not expecting over the course of the year. They should have given more of this back to taxpayers to tackle the cost of living crisis.”
Elsewhere, Cllr Shaun Davies, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Resources Board, welcomed the £500 million fund for councils to support low-income homes. He also urged the government to give details quickly on how it wil be allocated.
“The increase in short-term government funding through the Household Support Fund is a positive step but cannot on its own address underlying cost-of-living pressures, or to help people to make the most of their money and strengthen financial resilience,” he said.
“With many households likely to be economically vulnerable for some time to come, councils also want to work with government on an effective long-term solution to preventing poverty and disadvantage that moves away from providing crisis support towards improving life chances.”
