Interviewed by the BBC after Rachel Reeves delivered her budget speech, co-leader Carla Denyer said: “I think this Budget was a missed opportunity. I was looking for a Budget that makes this country fairer and the economy greener. The chancellor could have chosen to be brave and to fund our future by taxing the super-rich… but instead she ducked it… There were too many examples of her giving with one hand and taking away with the other.” See the full clip on Twitter
Talking to listeners of LBC, Carla said: “The Chancellor is aiming to raise around £25 billion from lower and middle-income people and small and medium sized companies, through things like changes to national insurance contributions, and only raise around £5 billion from the super-rich through changes to capital gains tax and non-dom status. The Green Party think that’s the wrong way around. We’ve long said that we think those with the broadest shoulders who can easily afford to pay a bit extra do so to fund public services that benefit everybody.”
On BBC 5 Live Carla reacted to the decision of the chancellor to freeze fuel duty, just as the Tories did for over ten years. She said: “The chancellor has decided to keep the discount on the cost of driving while giving everyone that relies on buses… a huge 50% increase… That’s going to have a huge impact on especially lower income people… Manny people from low-income households don’t have access to a car. In the city where I’m an MP in Bristol it’s nearly 50% of people don’t have a car… so this is going to have a huge impact on people. It’s bad for the environment, it’s bad for people’s pockets. It’s even bad for the economy because every £1 you invest in bus services pays back £4.50 to the local economy.”
Nation Cymru’s write-up of the Budget included a quote from the leader of the Green Party in Wales, Anthony Slaughter: “With public services at breaking-point after 14 years of Tory cutbacks, Labour had the opportunity today to reverse austerity and give people hope… Our NHS is crumbling and needs billions in investment. The money needed to do this exists and could be raised with a wealth tax on the super-rich, but Labour refuses to stand up to power.”
Left Foot Forward provides a summary of the Green Party reaction to the Budget, highlighting responses from Carla Denyer MP, Adrian Ramsay MP and Sian Berry MP.
Carla did separate interviews with PA, BBC News Channel, The Telegraph, LBC News, Talk Radio and Politics Joe.
Other reactions:
The IFS have said in their initial response: “In broad brush strokes, that was the Budget we had been led to expect: big tax rises, more cash for public services, more borrowing and more investment… The challenge will be to make sure the money is spent well enough to make those costs worth bearing.”
The IPPR meanwhile have said: “Today the chancellor has taken important steps towards building a better Britain. But decades of economic damage cannot be undone in one budget. This must be the start of a decade of national renewal”
This morning’s front pages split largely down party lines. The Guardian hails the “return of tax and spend” … The Mail,