Truss vows to go ahead with emergency Budget
LIZ Truss will press ahead with plans for an emergency tax-cutting Budget this month despite the suspension of Parliament.
Speculation had been rife at Westminster that the Budget could be delayed because of the Queen’s death.
But No10 said yesterday the new Prime Minister will still hold it this month. She is expected to proceed with her Tory leadership campaign pledges to reverse this year’s controversial rise in national insurance and scrap a planned hike in corporation tax.
Parliament, which is currently suspended for mourning, had been due to go into recess on September 22 to allow political party conferences to go ahead. King Charles has announced that a period of mourning will continue for seven days after the Queen’s funeral on September 19.
But No10 said yesterday that Government business would not be affected by this. The PM’s spokesman said Government activity would ‘return to a more normal drumbeat’ after the Queen is laid to rest. He added: ‘We are still planning to deliver a fiscal event this month.’
Miss Truss is also hoping to visit New York for next week’s United Nations General Assembly, leaving only a narrow window to hold the Budget. No10 refused to say whether it would now be held on Thursday September 22.
Ministers have also discussed holding it on September 23 or even recalling MPs at the end of the month. But sources said it would not take place during the Labour Party conference, which is due to run from September 25 to 28.
The PM’s spokesman said no extra legislation was needed to press ahead with the plan to freeze household energy bills at £2,500 this winter in England, Scotland and Wales. He added: ‘The public can be reassured that the energy price guarantee will come in on October 1.’ But households in Northern Ireland and businesses across the UK face an anxious wait to discover when help will arrive and what form it will take. The spokesman said: ‘There isn’t a date set for the business support element of the guarantee. We’re working that through. It hasn’t been impacted by the mourning period, as I understand.’
Calls for Parliament to meet to tackle the cost- of- living crisis before the end of the party conference season were led by veteran Tory MP Sir John Redwood.
He said: ‘After mourning a muchloved Queen and the state funeral, Parliament should meet. The current plan for a long conference recess means a delayed return on October 17. We need to tackle the cost- of-living crisis and energy shortage before then.’ Meanwhile, Miss Truss is expected to retain Simon Case as Cabinet Secretary – despite reports claiming she planned to replace him. She is said to have been impressed by him in talks about forming her new Government and designing the energy package.
The UK economy made a small return to growth in July, with gross domestic product expanding by 0.2 per cent after a 0.6 per cent contraction a month earlier, the Office for National Statistics said. However, economists said the lacklustre figure may not be enough to help dodge a recession.