Carmichael condemns household debt and pensioner tax hits from Tory economic mismanagement
Orkney and Shetland MP, Alistair Carmichael, has today condemned Conservative economic mismanagement, following analysis showing the harm to household debt and pensioner tax liabilities from government decisions.
Figures in the Budget show that households will spend £109 billion this year servicing their debt, double the figure before Liz Truss’s mini-budget in 2022, and more than ten times the Government’s £10.1 billion cut to National Insurance rates.
The average household will spend £3,855 this year just servicing their debts, an extra £1,917 compared to the year before the mini-budget. Separate forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility show that total mortgage interest payments are expected to rise by another 26.6% in 2024, having already doubled in the last two years.
Meanwhile, research by the Resolution Foundation think tank has found pensioners are set to lose out from this week’s Budget due to the government’s decision to freeze income tax thresholds, which will lead to an average of £1,000 increased tax for pensioners. In the Northern Isles alone, 6,681 income tax-paying pensioners are set to be hit with a total £6,680,764 stealth tax following the Budget.
Mr Carmichael said:
“This Budget was nothing but a Conservative con, with a £109 billion household debt bombshell hidden in the small print and pensioners being squeezed for tax on the sly. Families are still paying the price for the Tories crashing the economy in 2022 and sending debt repayment rates sky-high.
“Pensioners are now being punished further by this Conservative government with a £1,000 stealth tax. Many elderly people in the isles are already struggling to make ends meet as heating bills and the cost of the weekly shop go through the roof.
“I am proud that my party introduced the triple lock to protect people’s pensions, but this government has made a mockery of that pledge with these stealth taxes.
“Our country urgently needs a General Election – so we can kick the Tories out of power and repair the damage they have done to living standards and our economy.”