Budget: Reaction in Moray as UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak sets out plan to protect jobs and livelihoods
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THE UK Chancellor announced a raft of measures today in a Budget that "meets the moment" – including an extension of the furlough scheme and self-employment support until September.
Rishi Sunak set out a plan to protect jobs and livelihoods through the next stage of the crisis including extending the furlough and self-employment support schemes until the end of September.
He announced a six-month extension to the £20 Universal Credit uplift and a one-off £500 payment to eligible Working Tax Credit claimants.
The Chancellor also set out a six-month extension to the VAT reduction for the tourism and hospitality sectors and provided a £1.2 billion boost for Scotland with additional funding for the Scottish Government through the Barnett formula.
In some welcome news for whisky distillers alcohol duty will be frozen – the third time only in two decades.
Fuel duty will be frozen for the 11th consecutive year.
And there will be £37 million of investment to help the North Sea transition away from oil and gas, including £27 million for the Aberdeen Energy Transition Zone.
Mr Sunak said: "The UK Government has protected millions of jobs and livelihoods across Scotland – and the strength and stability of our economic union will ensure we bounce back from this pandemic together.
"This Budget will ensure the people of Scotland continue to be supported through our Plan for Jobs, committing more than a billion pounds in extra investment and funding to help fuel the UK’s recovery."
Scottish Conservative MP for Moray Douglas Ross said it was a Budget that delivers for people and for businesses in Moray.
Mr Ross said: "As we rebuild our economy after the pandemic, the Chancellor is rightly extending the furlough and self-employment support. The eligibility for the self-employed scheme will also be widened to ensure more people can benefit.
"That will help protect jobs and incomes here in Moray.
"I also welcome the decision to freeze alcohol duty, something we have achieved each year that I have been the MP representing this area. This will provide a real benefit to our whisky sector which is so important to this area.
"And the fuel duty freeze will save money at the pumps for drivers and businesses across Moray and I’m particularly pleased the SNP Scottish Government proposal to increase fuel duty has been rejected."
He added: "The additional £1.2 billion in funding for the Scottish Government will support the delivery of public services like our NHS and schools.
"There was also a huge vote of confidence in future economic growth in the north-east with £37 million investment in the North Sea Transition Deal and subsea technology.
"The Chancellor has said many times that this Conservative government will do whatever it takes during this crisis. He has done so, and has laid the foundations for a bounce back in our economy."
Moray SNP MSP Richard Lochhead MSP said the Budget failed to address inequalities.
He said: "Every Budget has some welcome measures but the headline from this Tory Budget is the threat to Scotland's recovery with a return to austerity, an extreme Brexit, and a Budget that completely fails to deliver the meaningful change and investment needed to build a fairer society.
"While the Covid pandemic affects every country in the world, it is the UK that has suffered the worst economic slump of any major economy. UK unemployment is rising and millions of families have seen their incomes slashed.
"The Chancellor has added to this misery by imposing a public sector pay freeze, a cliff-edge cut to Universal Credit in the autumn that will dismay thousands of families in Moray, as will tax rises for millions of workers with not even an inflationary increase in basic tax allowances.
"Covid has exposed the deep inequalities that exist in our economy but this Westminster Budget fails to address them. A decade of Westminster cuts have pushed 4.2 million children into poverty but there were no measures to reverse the growing child poverty crisis, no plan to raise statutory sick pay or introduce a Real Living Wage.
"On top of that the Tories' extreme Brexit has already cost Scotland's economy £3.94 billion and is projected to cost every person the equivalent of £1,600 in added costs, red tape and barriers to trade with Europe. Here in Moray the fishing industry is being hit hard, as are our other vital food and drink manufacturers and other exporters who employ so many people across the region."
Mr Lochhead added: "Scotland now faces a choice of two futures – on with the long-term damage of Brexit and Tory austerity cuts or the opportunity to protect our place in Europe and build a strong, fair and green recovery as an independent country."
Kara Stewart, operations manager at Moray Chamber of Commerce, said: "The much-anticipated Budget today will bring some relief for businesses, especially with the extension of the furlough scheme to September, as this scheme has been a lifeline for businesses UK wide over the past year.
"The duty freeze on alcohol and extension to the VAT cut for hospitality, accommodation, and attractions will provide a much-needed boost to hospitality as we focus on recovery and give distillers breathing room whilst dealing with the impacts of Brexit.
"It is positive to see the implementation of the new Recovery Loan Scheme to help businesses of all sizes through the next stage of recovery. However, the increase to corporation tax, albeit in 2023, does highlight that there will be future hurdles to face.
"It’s reassuring to see the introduction of the Restart Grant in England that will be introduced in April. We will wait to see how the details of this will unfold for Scotland based on the announcement of £800 million in consequential funding expected for the devolved nations."
Moray Chamber of Commerce will host an open-to-all "Breaking Down the Budget" event this Friday, March 5, between 10-10.45am. Click here to register.
