Why the budget was bad for Copeland
I was very concerned about the effect on working people in Copeland of the scrapping of the 10p starting rate of tax in chancellor Gordon Brown's budget.
This will hit many people in Cumbria: Ordinary working people in this constituency are being taxed to pay for a cheap political headline.
Fiscal experts agree that because of the abolition of the 10p introductory rate of tax, the budget will leave working people worse off if they have incomes below the median £18,000 a year and do not have dependent children. The overall impact of income tax & National Insurance changes in the budget will cost working families £340 million a year. Everyone earning between about £5,000 and £18,000 p.a. will pay more in income tax as a result of the changes.
There are many working men and women in Copeland who do not have children, or whose children have grown up, and who have incomes in the range that mean they will lose out because of the tax changes in the budget, and particularly the abolition of the 10p starting rate of income tax. This means that the starting rate of tax at the for people at the lower end of the earnings range has effectively more than doubled.
Since the budget I have spoken to a number of people in West Cumbria who will be worse off as a result of the changes to tax rates. To say that they are not happy about paying more tax so that Gordon Brown can score a clever political point is putting it very mildly.
Abolition of the 10p tax rate will hit low income earners such as junior nurses and police community support officers. Professionals such as doctors will have to pay more National Insurance.
And efforts to diversity the economy of West Cumbria, which we particularly need to do, will not be helped by Brown's increased taxes on small businesses. The Forum of Private Businesses called the changes a "further burden."
Instead of a budget to meet the needs of the people of Britain we have had a budget to meet the needs of the Chancellor's campaign for the Labour party leadership.
This will hit many people in Cumbria: Ordinary working people in this constituency are being taxed to pay for a cheap political headline.
Fiscal experts agree that because of the abolition of the 10p introductory rate of tax, the budget will leave working people worse off if they have incomes below the median £18,000 a year and do not have dependent children. The overall impact of income tax & National Insurance changes in the budget will cost working families £340 million a year. Everyone earning between about £5,000 and £18,000 p.a. will pay more in income tax as a result of the changes.
There are many working men and women in Copeland who do not have children, or whose children have grown up, and who have incomes in the range that mean they will lose out because of the tax changes in the budget, and particularly the abolition of the 10p starting rate of income tax. This means that the starting rate of tax at the for people at the lower end of the earnings range has effectively more than doubled.
Since the budget I have spoken to a number of people in West Cumbria who will be worse off as a result of the changes to tax rates. To say that they are not happy about paying more tax so that Gordon Brown can score a clever political point is putting it very mildly.
Abolition of the 10p tax rate will hit low income earners such as junior nurses and police community support officers. Professionals such as doctors will have to pay more National Insurance.
And efforts to diversity the economy of West Cumbria, which we particularly need to do, will not be helped by Brown's increased taxes on small businesses. The Forum of Private Businesses called the changes a "further burden."
Instead of a budget to meet the needs of the people of Britain we have had a budget to meet the needs of the Chancellor's campaign for the Labour party leadership.
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