Chancellor Rachel Reeves has delivered her first Budget, but the documents also contain some unpleasant surprises
Rachel Reeves has unveiled the first Labour Budget in nearly a decade and a half - but it contains some unpleasant details.
He said: "However this funding does not eradicate councils' funding gap, and local authorities will incur significant additional expense due to the increase in the National Living Wage. Therefore, councils will have little choice but to raise council tax and still will need to take difficult decisions over services to balance their budgets. We now await December's local government settlement to set out how this funding will be distributed.
4. No help for universities Absent from the Budget were any plans designed to ease the substantial financial pressures faced by universities, which are grappling with the effects of static domestic tuition fees and a decrease in international student enrolments. Elliot Chapman-Jones, head of public affairs for The Wildlife Trusts, has voiced concerns over the real-terms budget for farming, highlighting that it is on the decline and approximately £3.1 billion is necessary for nature-friendly farming in England alone. He said: "Ultimately, there is a monumental gap between current funding and what is needed to reverse wildlife declines, clean up rivers and significantly reduce the use of chemicals on farms.
Richard Hughes, the chair of the OBR, has stated that the government's pledged investment in infrastructure spending could take between eight to 10 years to impact growth figures. "It takes time for that public investment to have an impact," he commented. 8. Foreign aid cuts Campaigners and experts have openly criticised the Chancellor for neglecting to raise foreign aid in the latest Budget. This past year, the UK allocated £15.4 billion towards Official Development Assistance , equating to 0.58 per cent of Gross National Income as shown by a provisional spending document.
Echoing these sentiments, Hannah Bond, who shares the position of Co-CEO at ActionAid UK said: "We are profoundly disappointed that the Chancellor has chosen not to uplift the Official Development Assistance budget in the Autumn statement today. For a government that came to power pledging to reset its global relationships and place tackling climate change at the core of its foreign policy, this statement is an indication it plans to do anything but.
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