Reckless Budget risks Ashfield’s jobs and recovery

Gloria De Piero, Labour MP for Ashfield, today expressed her outrage at the Liberal Democrat –Conservative government decision to raise VAT. This is a broken promise from Deputy Prime Minister and Lib Dem Leader Nick Clegg, who attacked the Tories during the election campaign: "Our plans do not require a rise in VAT. The Tory plans do. Their tax promises on marriage and jobs may sound appealing. But they come with a secret VAT bombshell close behind."

Under the Government’s plans everyone will pay more, but the poorest will be hit hardest.

The Government’s own Office of Budget Responsibility says unemployment is now set to rise by tens of thousands more thanks to the measures announced by George Osborne. And Britain's leading experts on tax and spending, the Institute for Fiscal Studies, have strongly challenged Osborne's claims to have delivered a "tough but fair" budget, concluding that the measures in the emergency package would hit the poor harder than the rich.

Millions of retired people will gain nothing from the cut in income tax but will have to pay hundreds extra in VAT.

Families will lose out too. With those on low and middle incomes losing their tax credits, and Child Benefit cut by £129/year for over 7 million families

Responding to the Government’s Budget, Gloria said:

"Today the new ConDem Government showed their true colours, producing a budget that risks plunging the economy back into recession. It looks like once again a Tory Government thinks that unemployment is a price worth paying.

"Their new friends the Liberal Democrats have betrayed the people that voted for them at the last election. They are propping up a Tory Government that is attacking jobs and economic growth."

Gloria expressed anger that "the coalition has produced a Budget which will hit the poor harder than the rich and will unfairly hurt older people too. How can the Liberal democrats support this budget?"