Handouts for the rich, hardship for the poor - that’s the verdict on the Budget.
Millionaires paying the same income tax rate as those on £50,000, bankers pocketing unlimited bonuses and big business owners facing lower corporation tax than expected.
But there was little relief for working families on the brink.
Is further lining the pockets of the wealthy really necessary when we have people choosing between heating and eating?
What can be agreed is that it’s a true Tory budget. One that puts the interests of the rich ahead of those of the poor and needy.
Keir Starmer says he’ll stop banker bonuses in two years’ time, if Labour gets takes power. But by then more families will have been plunged into poverty.
We’re hurtling towards a worrying winter of rising energy bills, ever-increasing food prices. Yet the Tories promise their plans will boost growth for all.
From here, it looks like they will just boost the pay packets of their pals and, in turn, boost the coffers of their party.
The Resolution Foundation says households in London and the South East will gain £1,600 from the Budget next year, compared with just £500 for those in Wales, the North East and Yorkshire.
What happened to levelling up?
Ahead of Friday’s Budget, many could be forgiven for having a tiny glimmer of hope they would be thrown a lifeline. It didn’t come. In one of Liz Truss’s first acts as PM, she backed the mini-Budget and in doing so showed where her allegiances lie.
We will continue to tell the real stories of real people in this cost of living crisis. Ms Truss must listen if she wants to stay in No10 longer than her predecessor.
The ultimate gift
The gift of friendship turned into a gift of life for Lauren Beckett’s baby son Tommy.
The tot needed a new liver and when hope of finding a match faded, Lauren called best friend Kayleigh just for support – but she ended up saving the day.
Lauren and Tommy’s “Auntie Kayleigh” is proof friends are truly the family you choose. It just goes to show you don’t always have to look far to find the good in this world.
