I was shocked, but not surprised, to read the Social Mobility Commission’s recent State of the Nation report. The findings for children and young people in my constituency – Gateshead Central and Whickham – are damning. The commission found that after 14 years of a Conservative government young people growing up in Gateshead have some of the least favourable life chances when compared with their peers in the rest of the country; a devastating legacy shared by far too many across the North East of England.
We all know the inheritance left by the last government. One in four children in Britain growing up in poverty – worse still, one in three here in the North East. Over seven million on NHS waiting lists, a child mental health crisis, prisons overflowing and courts backlogged. Violence and thuggery on the streets of Britain, filthy rivers and seas and a housing and homelessness crisis.
I won’t apologise for banging on about the £22 billion black hole left in the public finances by Rishi Sunak and his chums, who failed to balance the books on day-to-day spending. This is the reality of where we are in 2024. Britain, and our region in particular, have been left to rot. Our infrastructure is literally crumbling, with schools and hospital roofs collapsing – a consequence of the last government’s failure to plan for the future.
I have been an MP for just four months. In that time I have received correspondence from over a thousand constituents, on a whole range of issues. But tackling the issues caused by poverty and inequality keep me and my brilliant casework team most busy each week.
We may hear less about the cost-of-living crisis than we did over the last two years, but for many of my constituents the struggle to get by, and, perhaps one day get on, remains. Gut-wrenching fear over rent arrears, putting food on the table and fuel poverty consume their lives and in the absence of the state – so brutally cut back under five successive Tory prime ministers – even our community and voluntary services are unable to meet demand.
So in this budget I was looking out for new measures to lift the one-in-three children in my constituency out of poverty and break down the barriers to opportunity. I wanted to go back to my constituents and tell them that their vote in July for change under Labour was worthwhile. To tell them that under new management we will prioritise long term investment , while protecting our most vulnerable here and now.
The Labour Budget
With a pay rise for three million workers, fuel duty frozen and a cash boost for the NHS and schools, this first Labour Budget will make sure work pays once again, while we get on with fixing the foundations of our economy and our public services.
We will see increased investment in the education budget – funding for free breakfast clubs across our primary schools, more subject specialist teachers, a major boost to SEND provision and a capital programme to repair and rebuild the crumbling schools left by the Tories.
But it doesn’t stop there. The increase in the National Living Wage up to £12.21 an hour will see £1,400 more in the pockets of a full-time worker. Young workers will see their pay lifted, too, to make sure an honest day’s work pays the bills. That makes a huge difference here in the North East, where more people are employed on the minimum wage than anywhere else in the UK.
Rachel Reeves made it crystal clear – with this Labour government those with the broadest shoulders will contribute the most. No tax rise in your payslip and an above-inflation increase to the state pension next year, with £470 more in pensioner’s pockets.
But what about the future? Boosting public investment in infrastructure and public services across the next five years will see over £100 billion to turbocharge the building of new homes, switch on Great British Energy, develop the tech of tomorrow through research & development, and drive the next industrial revolution in the aerospace and automotive sectors.
Our long term plan isn’t simply about tax and spend – last week the government secured £63 billion in private sector investment at our International Investment Summit. We’re creating much better conditions for business to invest and thrive. That means more and better jobs in places like the North East, with a buoyant private sector generating wealth, powered by a healthy, skilled and well-paid workforce.
So, I’m optimistic about our future. And this weekend I’ll be raising a cheaper pint to Chancellor Rachel Reeves – our first female Chancellor – to mark this historic budget.
