“George Osborne’s Budget came under attack from financial experts last night, with one saying that if he were the Chancellor he would not be able to sleep at night. Paul Johnson, head of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, gave him only a 50/50 chance of fulfilling his pledge to get Britain back in the black by the end of this Parliament in 2020. Mr Johnson added that Britain should be ready for ‘genuinely big’ tax rises.” – Daily Mail
Taxes:
Disability:
EU:
“This is not to say that Mr Osborne is all control freak – that would be too simple. But there is at least one version of him which refuses to let go. For all the talk about devolution, the big society and shrinking the state, leaving people to their own devices isn’t something that comes naturally to the chancellor. He is an instinctive centraliser. At this stage you’re probably thinking: hang on, that isn’t very Tory at all, and you’d be right.” – The Times (£)
Editorial:
>Today: James Sproule in Comment: Osborne has posed problems for business recently. But this Budget was, on balance, good news.
>Yesterday:
“David Cameron urged EU leaders to step up Nato’s mission in the Aegean Sea so naval vessels can intercept boats trafficking migrants from Turkey to Greece. However, the prime minister said that this should not mean the EU “taking an eye off” the Mediterranean Sea route from Libya.” – The Times (£)
“Sajid Javid was accused last night by fellow MPs of ‘having something to hide’ after he appeared to evade questions about a ‘Houdini’ investment scheme used by bankers to avoid tax. In an ill-tempered television interview, the Business Secretary was asked six times whether he was aware of a multi-million-pound scam concocted when he was a high-flying employee of Deutsche Bank.” – Daily Mail
“Parents will no longer be compulsory on school governing bodies under new plans which favour professionals with the ‘right skills’ instead. The government has proposed to scrap the requirement to reserve places for elected parent governors, which have traditionally acted as the voice of families. An education white paper released today suggested there will be a new focus on skills, rather than stakeholder representation.” – Daily Mail
Comment:
>Today: ToryDiary: We need an Opportunity Commission, not an Equality Commission
“Britain is to sign a new defence pact with Ukraine pledging to help the country with more military training and intelligence amid its confrontation with Russia. Michael Fallon, the Defence Secretary, said the new agreement was a signal Britain would “stand firm” with the beleaguered eastern European nation.” – Daily Telegraph
“John Whittingdale, the Culture Secretary, is facing a backlash in the House of Lords against his controversial plans to reform the governance of the BBC. Lord Anthony Lester QC is to table a private members’ bill which, if it passed into law, would prohibit many of the ideas that Mr Whittingdale favours for the BBC’s new royal charter.” – Daily Telegraph
“A new poll has put Labour ahead of the Conservatives for the first time since Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader. Labour was on 34 per cent, with Tories one point behind on 33 per cent, according to the YouGov poll. Ukip was in third place on 16 per cent with the Lib Dems on six per cent, The Daily Mirror reported.” – The Independent
EU:
“Nicola Sturgeon has defended her plans for middle-class Scots to pay more income tax than anywhere else in the UK by arguing they get free prescriptions, care for the elderly and university tuition for their children in return. The First Minister confirmed she will not copy George Osborne’s decision to increase the threshold at which workers start paying the 40p rate when control over income tax is devolved next year, and argued that Scots get a range of benefits not available in England.” – Daily Telegraph
“The senior US military commander said on Thursday that proposals by Donald Trump to revive waterboarding and target the families of terrorists would be illegal and likely to damage the morale of troops. General Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, did not refer directly to Mr Trump in his comments to the Senate armed services committee. However, asked to respond to ideas floated by Mr Trump about how to combat Isis, Gen Dunford gave a blunt assessment of the proposals.” – FT