Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Don’t bodge it
» Gordon Brown demands Sunak delivers jobs boost » Fears many struggling in Covid crisis will be betrayed
AFTER a year of sacrifice by workers and families in the Covid battle, many now face the prospect of being betrayed by Rishi Sunak’s plans to restore the battered economy.
Amid fears of soaring unemployment, the Chancellor is expected to warn in his Budget about the devastating toll of the virus on public finances – which could spark another Tory assault on those who already struggle the most in society.
It follows a decade of pay freezes and welfare cuts and flies in the face of Boris Johnson’s election vow to “level up”.
And Gordon Brown today accuses the Tories of failing to act quickly enough to prevent a deepening economic crisis that is “condemning a whole generation of young people to joblessness and rejection and many to depression”.
He slams the prospect of cutting the temporary Universal Credit uplift and warns Mr Sunak not to “balance his books on the backs of the poor or the unemployed”.
Mr Brown also urges Mr Sunak to boost posts by encouraging a private sector recruitment drive and making it more attractive for public authorities to hire young people and the long-term jobless.
Writing in the Mirror, he says: “If the famous Red Box he takes to the House of Commons on Wednesday does not contain new and far more ambitious measures, and money, to help the young and long-term unemployed, he will have failed in his duty to our country.”
He appealed for long-term plans to expand health services and train more people for work in social care and environmental areas such as clean energy.
A report by the Alliance For Full Employment, which Mr Brown set up, found 1,000 under-25s in every constituency in Britain had been jobless for at least six months.
Mr Sunak signalled yesterday he intends to extend lifeline schemes such as furlough and self-employment support until at least June – but did not rule out the prospect of tax hikes. He said support
ATTACK Ms Dodds will slam Tories over economy
If it does not contain ambitious measures for the young, he’ll have failed in his duty GORDON BROWN WARNS MR SUNAK HE HAS TO BOOST JOBS TO HELP RECOVERY
will align with Mr Johnson’s lockdown roadmap, with June 21 earmarked as the earliest date all restrictions can be lifted.
There were reports he plans to claw back £6billion by freezing income tax thresholds over the next three years.
The move would allow him to raise extra funds without breaking a Tory manifesto pledge not to raise income tax rates – but could push an additional 1.6 million people into a higher tax bracket.
Mr Sunak denied reports he had told Tory MPS he would increase taxes now in order to slash them in time for the next election. But laying the ground for possible tax rises, he said: “I want to level with people about that, about the problem that causes and the challenges it presents us with and be honest about our plan to address those.
“We do have a challenge in our public finances and if we don’t do anything borrowing will continue to be at very high levels even after we’ve recovered from Covid, debt will continue to rise indefinitely and that’s not a good situation.”
Despite the prospect of stealth increases, it emerged a new tax on internet giants’ sales was not expected until the autumn.
Pubs, restaurants and shops will be eligible for a £5billion grant package to help them reopen after lockdown, in one of the giveaways expected on Wednesday. But Mr
Sunak came under pressure from Tories in the Northern Research Group to go further by permanently slashing business rates from 50% of market rent to around 35% to help struggling high streets. They said: “Now is the time for a bold move.”
In a pre-budget speech today, Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds will say the pandemic has exposed “the weaknesses of 10 years of Conservative mismanagement” of the economy.
At an address to Bloomberg in London she is to demand a plan to protect jobs and businesses, give families certainty and secure the recovery, not a “triple hammer blow of council tax rises, social security cuts and pay freezes”.
MORE than 200,000 frontline health workers have not taken up the offer of a coronavirus jab.
The figures came as Chancellor Rishi Sunak unveiled a £1.6billion shot in the arm for the vaccine rollout. Boris Johnson yesterday urged everyone to get inoculated as he welcomed news more than 20 million people had received a first dose, saying: “Every jab makes a difference in our battle against Covid.”
Mr Sunak will set out plans to inject cash into the vaccination programme at Wednesday’s Budget, as ministers ramp up efforts to cover all adults by the end of July. But questions remain over whether vaccine hesitancy could hamper the UK’S path out of lockdown. Analysis of health service MESSAGE Jonathan Van-tam figures by the Sunday Times shows only 1,051,876 NHS employees have had a first dose, out of 1,158,300 frontline staff.
The problem is worse among care workers, with only 322,534 of 444,200 care home workers getting the jab.
Some people may have legitimate reasons for not having the vaccine, and ministers have been clear that it will not be made compulsory.
But there are fears that myths about the vaccine are damaging take-up, particularly among people from ethnic minority communities.
Concern about jabs causing infertility have been persistent despite explicit denials from senior medics.
The Royal College of Midwives and the Royal College of Obstetricians and
Gynaecologists issued a joint statement in January saying there is “no evidence” Covid vaccinations affect fertility, a message underlined by deputy chief medical officer Professor Jonathan Van-tam.
England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, has also urged healthcare workers to have the vaccination.
He told a Downing Street press conference last week: “It is the professional responsibility for doctors to do things which help protect their patients. And I expect that to be a professional responsibility for all other health and social care staff as well.” He made the comments after being asked about figures unearthed by Labour that showed only 52% of staff in care homes for the elderly in London have had the vaccine.
A “Listen to Nan” campaign is said to be in the works to persuade young people to have the jab by enlisting the help of their parents and grandparents.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister hailed official data showing more than 20 million first doses had been
administered in the UK as of yesterday. He posted: “A huge national achievement and a testament to the tireless work of NHS staff, volunteers, the Armed Forces and many more. I urge everyone to get the jab when called.”
The milestone comes as a leaked report said that a single dose of the vaccine is said to reduce the risk of ending up in hospital with Covid by up to 90%. Ministers were said to have been told the results apply to both the Pfizer and Oxford/astrazeneca vaccine, in a major boost in the battle against the virus.
The Department of Health and Public Health England declined to comment on the findings.
This week, the Chancellor will unveil plans to pour cash into the vaccine programme, which will play a critical role in successfully easing lockdown restrictions.
Mr Sunak will give £22m to fund a “world first” trial to test if different vaccines can be used together, or if a third dose is effective.
He will also divert £33m to improve the ability to respond to variants and improve vaccine testing, including £5m to create a “library” of Covid-19 jabs.
Mr Sunak said that the vaccination programme had been a major success so far but he insisted that it is “essential that we maintain this momentum”. He added: “Protecting ourselves against the virus means we will be able to lift restrictions, reopen our economy and focus our attention on creating jobs and stimulating growth.”
In a round of interviews yesterday, the Chancellor also hinted vaccine certificates could be a way to kickstart the economy.
He told the BBC’S Andrew Marr Show: “Obviously, it’s a complicated but potentially very relevant question for helping us reopen, particularly those parts of our country like mass events. That’s what the committee and the review will do – work through all of those questions and come to a view in a few months’ time.”
As of yesterday, 144 people died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid19, bringing the UK total to 122,849.