Steve Double, Member of Parliament for St Austell and Newquay, has welcomed yesterday’s Budget Statement.
Commenting, Steve said:
"Yesterday’s Budget was a balanced and sensible one that faces the challenges that we as a country have, head on.
Of course, locally the big news was the confirmation that the Government will be providing £79m to fund the A30-St Austell link road. This is fantastic news and something I have long been pushing the Government to do. I will be working with all concerned to ensure construction starts as soon as possible and this crucial infrastructure is in place for the good of Mid-Cornwall.
On the NHS, the Government has provided an additional £2.8 billion of funding to 2019-20, including £350 million for this winter and £1.6 billion next year. The Chancellor also announced we will deliver another £10 billion in capital to upgrade buildings and facilities as well as additional funding for agreed nurses pay rises.
Following my representations to the Government, I was also pleased to see a £1.5 billion package to address concerns about the delivery of Universal Credit. This will include the removal of the seven day waiting period, so that claimants only have to wait 5 weeks for their first claim, as well as increasing the amount you can apply for in an advance payment so a household can receive a full month’s claim within 5 days and ensuring new Universal Credit claimants in receipt of Housing Benefit will continue to receive it for two weeks.
Turning to our housing crisis, it was great to see the Government has abolished stamp duty for over 80 per cent of first time buyers, as well as investing an additional £15 billion for housebuilding – taking the total this Parliament to £44 billion.
It was also good to see duty frozen on fuel duty for the eight consecutive year, as well as freezing duties on ciders, wines, spirits and beers.
From April 2018, the personal allowance will rise to £11,850, meaning the typical basic rate tax payer will be £1,075 a year better off compared to 2010. From April 2018, the National Living Wage will rise by 4.4 per cent to £7.83, meaning full-time workers are £2,000 better off since it was introduced. The National Minimum Wage rate for young people will rise by around 5 per cent – the largest increase in youth rates in ten years.
Finally, in my role as Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group Protect Our Waves, I have been working with Surfers Against Sewage and other groups to ensure the Government takes action on marine plastic pollution. It was brilliant to see that the Chancellor has said he will be working with the Secretary of State for the Environment to investigate tax system and charges on single use plastic items to reduce waste.
With these national announcements it will now be down to my Cornish MP colleagues and I to ensure that Cornwall gets our fair share of these funds. There is always more to do but I am pleased that this Budget gives us a solid foundation to continue our work to make where we live, work and grow up a better place."