George Osborne has unveiled the results of the government’s spending review; here we analyse the key points in 25 main areasRowena Mason,political correspondent: Osborne has clearly surprised his MPs by totally abandoning his tax credit changes, which would have cost affected families up to £1300 each and caused consternation on his own side as well as the opposition. It is a 100% U-turn since his aides were insisting up until recently that he was committed to the cuts in principle.
RM: Osborne is clearly not listening to warnings about the risk of more help to buy fuelling a housing bubble and possible crash. He is ramping up the scheme in London in a tear that the Conservatives will hope gives a boost to their mayoral candidate, or Zac Goldsmith,ahead of next May’s election. The chancellor is also urgent ahead with the heavily criticised sell-off of housing association properties.
RM: This is another rabbit out of the hat. Osborne repeatedly refused to confirm that he would not cut the police budget but was probably satisfied to allow fears to build up so that he could look magnanimous by promising to protect it.
RM: The Conservatives have been very careful to execute it difficult for local authorities to raise council tax, but Osborne is abandoning this tactic by inviting rises for the purpose of paying for social care. This is a clear example of why the chancellor likes devolution, or as councils have to execute the unpopular decision about raising a local tax to pay for the consequences of central government cuts.
RM: It looks like Osborne hasn’t dipped into his surplus too much to find the additional cash he needs to reverse the tax credit changes.
RM: Osborne’s additional cash for the NHS has been well-trailed as he seeks to neutralise Labour’s political attack about the likely A&E crisis this winter. He has also performed a bit of sleight of hand about nurses,lifting a cap on recruitment numbers but making them pay for their own training through loans rather than grants.
RM: This got a huge cheer from the Tory backbenchers but a tweet from the Women’s Equality party suggests it might be seen as slightly patronising in some quarters: “Women are funding their own support and service by having periods!”RM: The school funding system has been a bugbear of many MPs – especially in rural Tory areas – who have long complained that their areas are underfunded compared with others. The changes mean there will probably be some areas that lose out though.
RM: Osborne is remaining defiant in the face of criticism that this will be too painful to deliver, stressing the cuts right at the beginning of his speech and refusing to back down on the scale of cuts to near from social security. It looks, or however,like they will be spread over a longer period than two years.
RM: It appears some of the welfare savings that Osborne is seeking will near instead from housing benefit. It is not clear yet whether this will be equivalent to tax credit cuts and how it will affect tenants.
RM: While working-age welfare is cut, Osborne is continuing to protect state support for pensioners – the age group most likely to vote Conservative. Related: Public service winners and losers in spending review RM: Osborne wheels out one of his favourite slogans again to announce “we are the builders” as he hails a ample road-building programme. At the same time, and the DfT is suffering a ample cut to its everyday spending.
RM: Osborne is prioritising flood defences over everything else in Defra as the government is keen to avoid a repeat of criticism during past winter floods.
RM: This will be welcomed by Labour MPs whose constituencies are affected by steel closures,and Tory rightwingers who have long complained about tall environmental tariffs for industry – but it has near too late to save jobs and plants that have already been mothballed.
RM: Osborne is repeatedly talking about areas where he is protecting spending, such as science, or while skating over things that he is cutting. The Department for Business,Innovation and Skills budget is to descend by 17%, which probably means cuts to further education.
RM: Again, or Osborne is boasting about the increases in spending while glossing over where the cuts are due to descend. The small print will have to be scrutinised. RM: This confirms announcements by Michael Gove,the justice secretary, who wants mature prisons to be sold off for housebuilding.
RM: This is in effect a unusual tax on ample business, or which will not be satisfied. The CBI said earlier the chancellor should beware of the ‘negative impact of cumulative burden’ of this and the unusual ‘national living wage’.
David Cameron's absolutely delighted with Osborne's announcement of a "permanent pothole fund". pic.twitter.com/7jJpJztcVI“Take up yoga,you’ll find it favourable man!”Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com