George Osborne’s budget met expectations of being unextraordinary. There were no major announcements apart from the tax on sugary drinks. We did see a chancellor brimming with confidence. Again he put forward the now-familiar argument that the economy was only safe in Conservatives’ hands. The Office for Budget Responsibility revised down its forecast on productivity growth, and yet still Osborne blamed this on global problems he singlehandedly could do nothing about. When things are up, thank the Tories, when things are down, blame some unknown shady group of foreigners doing something on the global stage. Nonetheless, while his colleagues backed him in the chamber, today’s response from the rightwing media and mutterings of disgruntled Tory parliamentarians will give Osborne something to sweat about. And there is only so much gimmickry and rhetorical magic Osborne can get away with before the facts eventually catch up with him: Labour must expose the chancellor’s missed targets and downgraded growth and not let him get away with it.
He pitched this as a budget for the next generation, yet there was little to offer struggling millennials who are spending unreasonable proportions of their salary on rent. The lifetime Isa should be welcomed as a means of encouraging people to save and topping up people’s savings, but this won’t help those young people who work low-wage jobs and cannot afford to save. Wages have stagnated while living costs have risen and young people have additional student loans to pay leaving them without much left to put away for a rainy day. Little has been done, too, to encourage young people to save into a pension and this new Isa may even distract them from doing so. A budget for the poorest members of this ‘next generation’ this was not.
And what of Jeremy Corbyn? His response to Osborne was straightforward, but the mood did change considerably at one point: When Corbyn talked about the cuts to the personal independence payment and the impact of austerity measures on disabled people, the chamber momentarily went silent and was followed by Labour colleagues vocally showing support for their leader. At this point Corbyn managed to push the idea that this was a budget where the most fortunate were being helped out while the most vulnerable people, in this case disabled people, were being cut off.
Where does the party go next? There is a clear chance for Labour to do something about the cuts to benefits for people with disabilities. The shadow chancellor rightly leapt on this during this mornings’s Radio 4 Today programme. Many disabled people will be around £150 worse off due to the reforms and others will have their Motability cars snatched from them – Labour must continue to do its utmost to change this and hold itself up as the party that will stand up against social injustice. I also forecast a rebellion from Tory members of parliament that will be reminiscent of the tax credits U-turn: Expect defiance from Brexiters, stealthy briefings from other future Tory leadership candidates, and those who spoke out against the tax credit reforms that would have hit the poorest. Labour should also think about its offer to the next generation, to not throw away the youth vote. Labour must build on its offer to all parts of the UK or risk losing more votes everywhere apart from London and reclaim the devolution agenda.
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