Another Brown Budget Con!

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 22nd Mar 2007

Commenting on today's budget announcements, Paul Holmes, Liberal Democrat MP for Chesterfield said:

"This was another classic Brown Budget of spin and misleading headlines.

"Most of the 'goodies' were jam tomorrow, not coming into effect until next year, the year after or even the year after that.

"The eye catching promise of cutting 2p off the basic rate of Income Tax - in a year's time - is not at all that it seems.

"This year, 2007-2008, taxes overall actually GO UP by 1%.

"But the ending of the low 10p Income Tax rate for low earners plus the changes to National Insurance mean that most people will actually be little better off even with the 2p Basic rate cut. Especially when the Government also keeps forcing Council Tax levels up at above inflation rates.

"Those earning less than £15,000 pa will actually be WORSE OFF as a result of these changes. The poor paying more tax while wealthier people benefit!

"The wealth gap between the rich and the poor is wider now than it was 10 years ago when Brown and Blair first came to power. The poorest 20% of the population still pay a larger percentage of their earnings in Income Tax than the richest 20% of the population do.

"Once the details of this latest con trick are unravelled people will feel cheated and disillusioned."