Attached is a link to a briefing on this week's budget prepared by the Trade Union group of Labour MPs. The Chancellor certainly grabbed the headlines by the highly surprising headline cut in the basic rate of income tax.
This move was clever politically and will put the Tories on the back-foot. However, the debate about the budget in the press seems all too partisan with all the 'rob Peter to pay Paul' platitudes how can we really assess the objective strengths and weaknesses in the budget?
Uncle Arthur is concerned that the abolition of the 10p starting rate appears to affect poor people directly. The balance to this is the boost to the Child Tax credit and further enhancements to the Working Families Tax credit. This policy has to be one of Labour's best policies, but the system needs to be efficient in order to retain it's credibility and mitigate against any 'damage' caused by the disappearance of the 10p rate.
Uncle Arthur would also like to see some recognition and a restoration of the married couple's allowance. No-one is kidding themselves that an extra £55 a month or whatever is the key to re-building marriage in the UK, of course not. But a bold, moral and perhaps spiritual statement by the Government in this regard would be a tremendous stake in the ground. Healthy and committed marriages and strong families would provide a sound foundation to address many of the social problems we face today.
This is Uncle Arthur, checking out, enjoy the weekend (created by God and defended by the Trade Unions!).
http://www.tugroup.net/down/treasurybriefing220307.doc
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