View From The House - 24th April 2003

Reprinted From The Lichfield Mercury

THE BUDGET IS NORMALLY a grand Parliamentary occasion. This time the atmosphere was muted. For the last few weeks, statements read out in the House were from the Prime Minister or Geoff Hoon, the Defence Secretary. No heckling or booing from us - just from a few of Labour’s own back-benchers. So when Gordon Brown rose to give his budget speech, it was as if no-one could bring themselves to return to the usual yah-boo of the Chamber. We just sat and heard him in silence. Eerie.

He didn’t say anything new. The rise in National Insurance had already been announced some months ago. This is very much a tax on jobs. With wages bills being increased across the board by one percent, at a time when margins are being squeezed - particularly in manufacturing - employers must think twice before taking on new staff. Some might even be thinking of laying off workers. But it is not just businesses that have been hit by this. Schools and hospitals have also been affected. Extra money handed out by the Government with one hand has been taken back by the other. I know of at least one High School in Lichfield with severe budgetary problems. The Government has a spin on everything and the line goes: ‘The 1% on National Insurance is for the NHS’. And when I have complained about the rise, ministers answer ‘So you are arguing for a cut in NHS spending’. But the Government could have raised the money they want on corporation tax or income tax instead if that is what is needed. NI payments have to be made by firms and individuals alike regardless of profit or income. This is very unfair.

One phrase in the litany of spin we have not heard from the Chancellor for the first time since 1997 is “No return to boom and bust”. The Financial Times explained why. The Government’s figures just don’t add up – there’s a whopping great hole. And that could mean still more higher taxes – in addition to the 53 stealth taxes that have been imposed since 1997 – or cuts 12 months from now.

But the current spin is: “The Conservatives want a 20% cut in public expenditure”. Ministers say it ad nauseam in Parliament and I think Labour will say this locally too. Well, it’s a lie! How did it come about? With there being more managers now in the NHS than beds in hospitals, one of my colleagues said - quite rightly - there must be a way to cut down bureaucracy. He and I would like to see a cut in administrative costs so that money can be put back into hospital wards and into classrooms. It would be great if we could achieve a 20% cut in administration spending. Only Alistair Campbell can tell you how he converted that aim into a 20% cut across the board in the NHS or schools. But now Labour MPs are parroting this lie over and over again. In the second world war, Propaganda Minister Josef Goebels said “If you tell a lie often enough, they will believe you”. It’s a bit grim when Labour takes advice like that!