The 2016 Budget and three items that were missing

George Osborne delivered his eighth Budget speech on Wednesday 16^th March 2016, describing it as “Putting the next generation first”.

The new levy on soft drinks with a high sugar content to save children from obesity captured the headlines, but eliminating the budget deficit would be a more significant way of putting the next generation first.

The deficit is two-thirds down but achieving his latest target of a budget surplus by 2019, will require luck as much as judgement.

The Office for Budget Responsibility warned that there is only a 55% chance of hitting the 2019 target.

The UK might have the fastest growing economy in the G7 group of nations but the global outlook is gloomy and three weaknesses in the UK economy could frustrate the Chancellor’s plans.

The promised increase in the personal tax allowance was reiterated with a staged increase to £11,500 which will be welcomed by low earners and raising the threshold of the higher income tax rate to £45,000 will similarly be welcomed by middle income earners.

But, it was not welcomed by the Opposition who focused on the £3.5 billion of savings in department spending, including cuts in the benefits to severely disabled people and it remains to be seen whether the electorate view this as another Osborne gaff.

Strategically, important is the Chancellor’s commitment to long term infrastructure projects.

These include £60 million towards initiating the HS3 rail link between Leeds and Manchester and £80 million for planning Crossrail 2 to ease congestion in London.

Other measures include £100 million to help homeless people to move on from emergency hostels and £10 million for projects that offer refuge to rough sleepers.

Tax support for the oil and gas industry and measures to prevent large companies shifting their profits overseas to escape UK taxation are positive, and drinkers will welcome the freeze on duty for beer, cider and spirits.

Similarly freezing fuel duty for a sixth year will please motorists, cutting business rates for small firms will help them and abolishing Class 2 National Insurance contributions will please the self-employed.

Additionally, more funds for flood defences in areas flooded this winter are another positive move.

That said there are three issues that were barely addressed in the Chancellor’s speech, if addressed at all.

The first is our poor record on productivity, he mentioned it but offered no thoughts about how to improve it.

The second issue stated that the UK has a balance of payments deficit of £17.5 billion, we import more than we export and it would have been prudent for the Chancellor to do more to stimulate exports.

The third was the economic growth lauded by Mr Osborne depending too much on consumer credit and debt.

The current low level of inflation makes it easier for individuals and households to live with debts, but nationally, this is a potential hazard if global recession returns.  

The Chancellor must be aware of these weaknesses and it is frustrating that he preferred to say and do little or nothing to address them whilst ‘the sun is shining’, to quote his own past criticisms of Gordon Brown’s Chancellorship.

The controversial Investigatory Powers Bill

On Tuesday 1^st March 2016, the Government introduced the Investigatory Powers Bill to parliament, which is highly controversial and promises to amplify the already divisive passions roused by the EU Referendum.

The Bill would give new powers to the security services and police to protect us from terrorist plots and the activities of criminal gangs, but some see these powers as unnecessarily draconian.

The Government want to push the Bill through before December when the existing Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act expires.

The Bill requires those who provide our web and phone services to preserve records of our browsing and phone calls for 12 months, for the security services and police to access and it allows them to hack into our computers and telephones.

The safeguard against abuse of these powers includes a ‘double-lock’ of ministerial authorisation and a panel of seven judicial commissioners who can veto specific applications to use these powers, exceptionally in urgent cases the veto does not apply for up to five days.

A senior judge will serve as an Investigatory Powers Commissioner and the Prime Minister must be consulted if MPs communications are to be intercepted, similar safeguards will be included in relation to journalists and other ‘sensitive professions’.

The case for this legislation is obvious in relation to the threats posed by terrorists like those who attacked Paris last November, that involved at least three groups coordinated by phone, email and social media.

Islamic State uses social media a lot to communicate with its supporters and hundreds of Britons have gone to Syria to fight with them and some have returned, possibly to engage in terrorist acts here.

The Security Services can only prevent these acts if they have fore-knowledge of them from close surveillance of the communications of suspected terrorists.

Similarly, the police want to be able to counter increasingly sophisticated criminal gangs which hack into telephone services, like “Talk Talk”, to access our bank details.

Whilst its critics recognise the need for strong surveillance powers, they want more safeguards and question the need to push the Bill through whilst the nation is pre-occupied with the EU referendum.

The timetable for the Bill aims to complete its legislative passage before the summer recess and the critics argue that this haste is unnecessary and suggest that the sunset clause that will expire the existing legislation in December could be extended for another year to give more time for a debate to address their fears.

They want the Bill to be divided into two Bills, with the data retention provisions to be separated from the investigatory powers.

They are concerned about the pressures on Apple by the US Government to over-ride encryption protecting emails from hacking and don’t want the UK to follow that lead.

Three separate Parliamentary inquiries into a draft version of the Bill made 123 recommendations and critics say that the Bill does not take full account of them.

The tension between personal privacy and national security is a real one, some will say if one has nothing to hide the Bill is fine but others fear the potential abuse of these powers.

If our communications can lawfully be intercepted by public guardians, they can also be unlawfully intercepted by criminals.

We all need wisdom, individually in terms of what we do online and on our phones, and communally in the use of the proposed powers to protect us and maintain the rule of law.

Bradford Council's financial plans up to 2017/18

The ruling Labour group, which has a narrow majority on Bradford Council, pushed through its revised budget plans on Tuesday 25^th February 2016.

This despite failing to win the backing of Councillors from the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Greens, UKIP or Bradford Independent Group.

In Adult Services the key changes are:

• Higher home care charges for those who can afford it;

• 15 minutes’ welfare checks on elderly people at home will be replaced by a phone call;

• An extra £1.5m will be spent on social care in 2016-17, rising to £3m in 2017-18, to help increasing demand;

• £1m cut to housing support for the homeless, ex-offenders and people with mental health issues;

• An extra £400.000 spent looking after people who have no right to claim benefits and are facing destitution, such as failed asylum seeker.

In Regeneration the key changes are:

• There will be a review of community organisations getting subsidised rents or rate relief, before cuts are made;

• Some street lights will be turned off in the early hours;

• Winter gritting routes will be reduced;

• City Park’s maintenance fund will be replaced with a £500.000 reserve;

• The council’s Jacobs Well office will be closed with staff moving to Britannia House.

In Environment and Sport the key changes are:

• General waste bins will only be emptied fortnightly;

• New charges will be brought in for garden waste collections, library book reservations and some car parks at woodlands and parks;

• The Bingley Music Live festival will have its subsidy removed;

• The youth service would be cut;

• Some sport pitches would be transferred to clubs;

• Civic Christmas trees would no longer be put up, unless private sponsors can be found

• Around two-thirds of libraries will become run by volunteers or close if no volunteers are found;

• The council would stop funding police community support officers, saving £770.000

• The tourism budget would be cut, with the possible closure of visitor centres.

In Children’s Services key changes are:

• Special needs services to be moved from a central hub to individual schools;

• A contract with Connexions to help young people into training and jobs will be cut by £450.000, or 30 per cent;

• A ‘community resolution’ service which sees low-level young offenders making amends to victim rather than facing court will be axed;

• An extra £1.5m a year will be spent on children in care, to meet rising demand;

• An extra £483.000 will be spent on the delayed remodelling of the management of children’s centre.

The Council tax will go up by the legal maximum of 3.99 per cent, which includes a new two per cent levy to raise cash for social care.

But, once again the Bradford Council’s Labour Group on Thursday 25^th February 2016, showed at full council that they would prefer to pay the wages of trade union official rather than spend it on the most vulnerable people in the Bradford District, but what else do you expect from a party funded by the trade unions.

They have also shown recently that they don’t care about wasting public money after they took the decision and agreed at an executive meeting previously to the fitting of 60 colourful, flashing lights at a cost of £235 per light bulb on the top of Margaret McMillan Tower the former central library, which is now the home of children's services. but what purpose do they serve?

It’s about time that councillors at Bradford Council stop blaming David Cameron and the Government.

It seems we all need to be remind of Jesus words in John 8:7, ‘Let him who is without sin cast the first stone’

Only those who are faultless have the right to pass judgement upon others, no one is faultless and that, therefore, no one has such a right to pass judgement.