Keir Starmer has accused the Conservatives of turning Britain back into the 'sick man of Europe', using his budget response to highlight a decade of economic stagnation under the Tories. The Labour leader said the government had presided over 13 years without wage growth, leaving the country in a 'doom-loop of lower growth, higher taxes and broken public services'.
Starmer noted that the Office for Budget Responsibility still forecasts the biggest drop in living standards since records began. 'Like millions across our country, this budget leaves us stuck in the waiting room, with only a sticking plaster to hand,' he told the House of Commons.
The most pointed criticism was reserved for the abolition of the lifetime pension tax allowance, which will benefit those with pension pots exceeding £1m. Starmer described it as a 'huge giveaway to some of the very wealthiest', arguing it was unnecessary when many struggle to save. Other Labour MPs voiced disappointment over the lack of measures for 'generation rent' and industrial strategy.
On the Conservative side, rebels including Jacob Rees-Mogg criticised the planned corporation tax rise from 19% to 25%, despite offsetting capital investment relief. Ranil Jayawardena, founder of the pro-Truss Conservative Growth Group, suggested childcare funding would be better given directly to parents. However, most Tory MPs welcomed the package, with Treasury select committee chair Harriett Baldwin praising the chancellor for stabilising financial markets and saving an estimated £4bn in interest payments.
