I very much welcome the Chancellor’s announcements in the Spring Statement today to help tackle rises in the cost of living while also ensuring that our economy remains strong.
I know that my constituents across Pudsey, Horsforth and Aireborough have raised rising the rising cost of petrol and diesel— rises which are of course being driven amongst other things by the consequences of Russia’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine— as one of their highest priority concerns.
That is why I am delighted that the Chancellor has announced that fuel duty will be immediately cut by 5p per litre from tonight, helping to abate the rising costs for the many people who rely on their cars to get to work, school, and get around the constituency.
I have always been mindful that we need to fulfil our ambitions to be tax a cutting government, ensuring that people can keep more of the money they earn, while also ensuring that our economy remains strong and allows us to deliver our vital public services and be there to lead the world in responding to global events, just as we have seen following the war in Ukraine.
I therefore greatly welcome the Chancellor setting out a new Tax Plan to reduce and reform taxes – including cutting the basic rate of Income Tax from 2024 and cutting National Insurance for 30 million working people – meaning people across our area can keep more of what they earn.
The Government will be raising the National Insurance personal threshold from £9,500 to £12,570 from July. This is equivalent to a £6 billion tax cut for nearly 30 million workers, including thousands of workers across Pudsey, Horsforth, and Aireborough, and worth over £330 a year, across the entire United Kingdom. This is the largest single personal tax cut in a decade.
This Tax Plan delivers the biggest cut to personal taxes in over a quarter of a century – simplifying our system in the long-term whilst we deliver immediate relief for cost-of-living pressures.
I look forward to continuing to engage with my Ministerial colleagues in the Treasury and the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the coming weeks and months to ensure that the issues which matter most to my constituents are raised at the highest levels of Government so that we can deliver on these priorities, like tackling the cost of living.
Stuart Andrew