The Green Party has condemned the Chancellor’s austerity Budget after he announced spending cuts of £30 billion which will impact the poorest the hardest.
County Durham Green Party co-ordinator Fiona Shenton warned that yesterday’s Autumn Statement has left people paying the price for a decade of Conservative economic mismanagement, while those with the broadest shoulders and those profiting from the crisis have been let off the hook.
She said:
“Whatever Jeremy Hunt claims, his Budget amounts to taking £30 billion away from people who need it during a cost of living crisis–both directly and through cuts in services.
“The cuts will force local councils and vital national public services to deny people vital support.
“Yet we know there is enough wealth in this country for us to avoid the dire economic situation this Conservative government is forcing us into.
“The problem is that wealth is concentrated in too few hands, when it should be spread throughout the economy to the benefit of everybody.
“The Green Party would introduce a 1% wealth tax on the super-rich and increase taxes on unearned income to ensure there is sufficient money to fund the public services we deserve.
“We would also close the loopholes in the windfall tax to enable investment in green solutions to the energy and the climate crisis.
“This would put an end to the spiral of chaos and invest in the green infrastructure and world-class public services our country deserves.”
