David Davis comments on the Chancellor’s 2016 Budget

Today the Chancellor, George Osborne, made his annual budget statement, delivering a budget that will “put the next generation first”.

The Chancellor announced a package of measures that will continue to reduce the budget deficit, leaving the country in surplus by 2020, while delivering tax cuts alongside the vital funding to the country’s infrastructure.

In response to the Chancellor’s statement, David Davis MP said:

“The Chancellor has rightly warned that global economic headwinds, not least global economic headwinds, are strengthening, and that under the Conservatives this country is now in a far stronger position to weather any potential economic storm.

It is excellent news that the budget deficit and borrowing continue to fall, and that we are on course for a budget surplus by the end of this Parliament. This Government’s careful management of the economy continues to lay the foundations for prosperity, and the economic security of a country that lives within its means.”

On tax reductions:

“I fully support the Government’s measures to reduce tax on the lowest-paid through the rise in the tax-free allowance, as well as those hardworking families who have found themselves paying the higher tax rate in recent years. This tax rate was designed for the genuinely wealthy, rather than the striving professionals on whom it now falls.

I have long called for the higher tax rate threshold to rise, and by raising it to £45,000 this Government is putting money back into the pockets of hundreds of thousands of families across the country.

At a time when many families are rightly cautious with their own budgets, these measures show the support that the Conservative Party is giving to people’s living standards. Combined with the lowering of the rates of capital gains tax, these measures will go a long way to relieving the pressures on pay, on savings and on investment.”

On changes to Business Rates:

“The Conservative Party have always been the strongest supporters of small businesses. The Chancellor’s announcement that the rate of corporation tax will be cut to 17%, and that the threshold for small business rate relief will rise to £15,000 with the higher rate rising to £51,000, will be a major boost to small businesses across the country.

Many small businesses will now not pay any rates at all, and for other small businesses lower business rates mean more money being put into the businesses themselves, with greater opportunities for growth and jobs.”

On the Government’s commitment to fair funding for schools:

“This is an excellent outcome which comes after many years of lobbying the Government to commit to fair school funding.

Today’s commitment will end the current regional imbalance where the ten best funded areas of England receive an average of £6,300 per pupil of schools block funding, compared to just £4,200 in the ten worst funded areas – with no objective basis for the difference.

The extra £500 million of additional core funding will mean that the new national funding formula can start to be rolled out from 2017/18 onwards. It will help ease the transition to the new formula and will ensure that 90% of schools due to receive funding increases do so by 2020.

The consultation for these changes is currently ongoing, and represents a great opportunity to ensure that the voices of education leaders and parents are heard.”

On local infrastructure:

“The widening of the M62 will mean increased capacity, making journeys on this busy route easier, faster and less stressful for businesses and families around my constituency and the wider Yorkshire region.

It is disappointing that the increased money the Government has committed to flood defences is not being allocated to the Humber. This reinforces the need for a strategic approach to defending the entire estuary and I will continue to campaign vociferously for comprehensive defences.”

On the Sugar Tax:

“Childhood obesity is a major problem for this country, blighting young lives and putting serious strain on our National Health Service. So it is absolutely right that the Government are looking at ways to combat childhood obesity. A tax on sugar may be the most effective way to do this, and I will look closely and the Government’s proposals when the full details are published.”