Queen’s Speech fails to tackle cost-of-living crisis, say critics
Johnson accused of doing nothing for those struggling with rising bills
BORIS Johnson has missed the opportunity to tackle the cost-of-living crisis in the Queen’s Speech, critics have warned.
Prince Charles delivered the royal address to the Houses of Parliament yesterday alongside his eldest son William, as the monarch was unable to attend for the first time in 59 years.
The historic occasion marked the official opening of the new term of parliament, and has only twice before been conducted by someone else other than the Queen in her 70-year reign.
In the shortest Queen’s Speech for a decade, the Prince of Wales set out how Mr Johnson will seek to boost the economy, continue the levelling up agenda and change a raft of legislation in the wake of Brexit.
However, campaigners and politicians say the 38 Bills announced will do nothing to help people struggling now with rising food and energy prices, and have accused the Prime Minister of missing the mark.
Prince Charles announced that the Government would look to increase the country’s energy security by “supporting low-carbon energy system” and reducing gas dependence.
In Scotland, a bid to establish a carbon capture and storage facility in Aberdeenshire was rejected by Westminster in favour of another bid in the North of England, with SNP MPS outraged at the decision.
These new measures could see a reconsideration or extension of the plans to develop more carbon capture clusters across the UK.
The new energy Bill will also pave the way for an extension of the energy price cap, due to expire at the end of 2023, which could help slow another huge surge in energy costs.
Leader of the Opposition Sir Keir Starmer said the plans as a whole were “pathetic” and described the Queen’s Speech as “thin”.
He said the Government was “out of energy”, and was led by a Prime Minister who was “entirely out of touch”. The Labour leader added: “This Government’s failure to grow the economy over a decade combined with its inertia in the face of spiralling bills means that we are staring down the barrel of something we haven’t seen in decades, a stagflation crisis.”
Mr Johnson hit back by attempting to mock Sir Keir by referring to him as the “Leader of the Opposition of the moment” and branding Labour MPS as “great quivering jellies of indecision” when it comes to nuclear energy.
The Scottish Government has warned of the impact of a new “Brexit” Freedoms Bill, which will bring new powers to the UK Government that allow it to quickly amend, repeal or replace EU laws which were retained after Brexit.
Holyrood ministers are not keen to replace EU laws, and have previously said they would oppose any Brexit-related bills passing into Scots law
Angus Robertson, SNP MSP and Constitution Secretary, warned the plans mean “we could be facing a race to the bottom”.
He added: “The Brexit Freedoms Bill is said to provide ‘new found freedoms’, but its main purpose is to give the UK Government the freedom to abandon long-established standards relating to food, food labelling, the environment, animal and plant health, and workers’ rights.
“We believe it will fire the starting pistol for a race to the bottom on standards, and is a further expansion of the hard Brexit the Scottish people did not vote for, and to which the Scottish Parliament did not consent.”
He also complained that the Scottish Government had been given “only a cursory briefing” on the reforms.
A number of the proposals announced by Prince Charles yesterday had been already touted in the previous parliamentary term, with several Bills having been carried over including the Online Safety Bill
and another on animal welfare. Several new initiatives were announced, including a Bill to tackle exploitation of seafarers following the P&O scandal.
The Harbours (Seafarers’ Remuneration) Bill aims to ensure all those working at sea are paid a salary “equivalent” to the National Minimum Wage, after the ferry firm sacked hundreds of its UK staff and employed overseas workers on as little as
£3 per hour.
Sweeping changes are planned for elements of the media, mainly broadcasters, in the new Media Bill which paves the way for the privatisation of Channel 4 and will give Ofcom more powers against streaming services if they fail to protect viewers form harmful content.
A new Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which will see areas of England given greater devolution if it is wanted, will also see the Government required to set “Levelling Up missions and produce an annual report updating the country on delivery of these missions”.
Poverty campaigners say the Government’s announcements do nothing to help people who cannot afford food or heating right now.
Speaking to MPS in the Commons yesterday, the Prime Minister suggested that, after 2024, the Government will have “the fiscal firepower to help families up and down the country”.
He added: “The Chancellor and I will be saying more about this in the days to come. But at the same time as we help people, we need the legislative firepower to fix the underlying problems in energy supply, in housing, in infrastructure and in skills which are driving up costs for families across the country.
“And this Queen’s Speech takes those issues head on. And above all, we are tackling the economic challenges with the best solution of all and that is an ever growing number of high wage, high skill jobs. Jobs, jobs, jobs.”
Peter Kelly, director of the Poverty Alliance, said not only do the measures fail people in the short term, they also do not help to improve living costs in future.
He explained: “People want a UK Government that believes in compassion and justice, and in making sure everyone can live a dignified life. This Queen’s Speech has failed to live up to those values.
“People in poverty are struggling to keep their heads above water, and more and more of us are being drawn into a current of poverty by the cost of living crisis.
“The UK Government needs to deliver urgent help with rising bills to keep households afloat. There was nothing but a brief mention on that.
“The Speech talked a lot about promoting growth, but now more than ever we need a just economy, focused on wellbeing, that secures adequate incomes for people, so we can all live a dignified life. Growth must help those who need it the most.”
Economic growth plans were also lacking in the Queen’s Speech, according to Dr George Dibb, head of the IPPR Centre for Economic Justice think-tank. He said there was “disturbingly little in their legislative programme that will make a real difference”.
He added: “Faced with last week’s warning from the Bank of England that the economy will shrink later this year and throughout 2023, it beggar’s belief the Government plan to take such limited action to prevent this.”
Business leaders gave a mixed reaction to the Government’s measures. However, with the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) welcoming some of the plans.
Martin Mctague, chairman of the FSB, said: “It was good to hear a pro-enterprise address today, but it’s now time to turn kind words into action. Firms need the Government to deliver quickly on levelling-up commitments through plans for devolution, infrastructure investment and regulatory reform.
“To date, a combination of a disappointing Shared Prosperity Fund settlement, rolling back of HS2 plans and withdrawal of the New Enterprise Allowance has left many in target areas feeling underwhelmed.”
He said the plans to set up a new infrastructure bank and improve broadband had to happen quickly, and said so far the Prime Minister’s levelling-up plans have been “too vague to have any meaningful impact”.
The Government needs to deliver urgent help with rising bills to keep households afloat. There was nothing but a brief mention on that