Chancellor Rachel Reeves is facing significant pressure to prioritise support for British families as she prepares to deliver her crucial Budget announcement to the House of Commons.
The SNP has issued a direct plea, urging the Labour Chancellor to 'help, not hammer' households across the UK. This comes amidst widespread anticipation that Ms Reeves will introduce a series of tax increases.
Pre-Budget Pressure from Scotland
Ahead of Wednesday's statement, the Chancellor has been confronted with specific demands from north of the border. These include calls to abolish the controversial two-child benefit cap and the existing windfall tax.
Furthermore, there are proposals for a new levy on commercial banks. The revenue from this tax would be used to fund a substantial £300 reduction in energy bills for the majority of UK households, excluding the wealthiest.
In the hours leading up to the Budget, SNP economy spokesman Dave Doogan launched a strong critique of the government's economic record. He described the Labour administration's handling of the economy as 'a disaster' and accused them of making Scottish families and businesses foot the bill for their failures.
'Voters were promised change but things have got even worse,' Mr Doogan stated. 'The Chancellor must help families – not hammer them with billions of pounds of cuts and damaging tax hikes that destroy jobs and hurt economic growth.'
Key Demands and Economic Context
The SNP's formal demands for the Budget are clear. They want the UK Government to implement the £300 energy bill cut financed by a bank levy and to match the SNP's Scottish child payment. This move, they argue, could lift an estimated 2.3 million families out of poverty.
Mr Doogan emphasised the current cost-of-living pressures, pointing to soaring energy bills, food prices, and high unemployment. 'Under the Labour Party... too many families are struggling from payday to payday,' he said, calling for money to be put back into people's pockets.
There is growing speculation that the Chancellor may be poised to scrap the two-child limit on benefits. Such a move would have direct consequences for the Scottish Government, which had already allocated funds to mitigate this policy in Scotland from early next year.
Support from Campaigners and Other Parties
Anti-child poverty campaigners have added their voices to the calls for change. John Dickie, director of the Child Poverty Action Group, labelled the two-child limit as the 'key driver of rising child poverty across the UK'.
'Scrapping it is the most cost-effective way to reduce that poverty,' he argued, noting that it would also free up Scottish budget funds currently set aside for mitigation.
The Scottish Greens have also weighed in, urging Ms Reeves to 'tax the super wealthy' to fund investments in green jobs and reduce inequality. Meanwhile, the Scottish Lib Dems, through their Scottish affairs spokeswoman Susan Murray, have called for the Chancellor to negotiate a new customs union with the European Union.
In her own pre-Budget remarks, Chancellor Reeves sought to reassure the public. 'Today I will take the fair and necessary choices to deliver on our promise of change,' she said, pledging not to return to austerity while also avoiding reckless borrowing.
She committed to action on the cost of living, hospital waiting lists, and the national debt, promising 'the biggest drive for growth in a generation' through widespread investment.
