John McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, responding to the
Budget, said:

“Philip Hammond has used his first Budget to claw £2 billion in
tax on those self-employed who are on low and middle incomes. But he continued
to boast about the £70 billion worth of tax giveaways at the top announced by
his predecessor.

“Labour will oppose this unfair £2 billion sole traders tax on the
self-employed low and middle earners. 

“Rather than provide the funding that would end a social care
crisis in which 1 million vulnerable people go without adequate care, or
calling an end to the state of emergency in our NHS, the Tories are doing next
to nothing and don’t seem to recognise the scale of the crisis they have
created.

“The Tory rigged economy continues for households in our country,
who face being £1,800 worse off by the end of the forecast period, and if you
are on the National Living Wage by the end of this parliament you face a 25p
per hour cut.

“This Budget does not address the problems created by seven years
of Tory failure, and it has failed the fairness test for women who will be hit by
a cuts in public services, and the national living wage.

“Instead of equipping our country for Brexit, he is building our
economy on sand, and the little he has announced today will mean we are less
prepared for the challenges we face outside of the EU.”

Ends

Jeremy Corbyn MP, Leader of the Labour
Party, delivering a message of support to
people lobbying for Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), said:

My best wishes and International
Women’s Day greetings to everyone supporting today’s WASPI lobby.

You are highlighting a grave injustice.
The Coalition Government’s decision to move the goalposts, by bringing the
equalisation of the state pension age forward by a further two years to 2018,
was plain wrong.

It was a betrayal of tens of thousands
of women who had planned for their retirement based on the 1995 legislation.

It was justified by claims Britain
needed a dose of austerity – yet at the same time tax cuts worth billions have
been given to big companies and the very wealthy.

Today, we can expect the Chancellor to
boast that the economy is doing better than expected. But will he do anything
to right this wrong? I very much doubt it.

Labour is already committed to
extending Pension Credit to help those worst hit by this callous change.

We are also developing solutions for
those affected who would not be entitled to Pension Credit. And we will
continue to consult with WASPI and others on this as part of our planning for
government.

I am sorry I cannot join you today. I
will be in the Chamber of the House of Commons for the Budget statement, ready
to respond.

My speech will challenge the
Government’s policy of endless austerity for the many, alongside generous tax
giveaways for their wealthy and privileged friends.

My thoughts are with you today. I
congratulate you on your stand and look forward to working with you to achieve
justice.

Best wishes

Jeremy Corbyn

Leader of the Labour Party

Gareth Thomas, Shadow Minister for Local Government
Finance, in response to evidence that Surrey County Council came to a
‘gentleman’s agreement with the Government over their budget, said:

“This
recording proves what we have long suspected. The Government came to a secret
“gentleman’s agreement” with the leadership of Surrey County Council, whilst
the rest of country faces a crisis in social care and brutal cuts to
council budgets.

“Theresa
May and her ministers, including Sajid Javid, have been playing political games,
conducting backroom sweetheart deals for their friends, whilst councils across
the country struggle to cobble together the money to adequately fund social
care. Meanwhile, there is a crisis in social care with a £1.9billion funding
gap and elderly people living without the care they need.

“Theresa
May must come clean about the terms of the deal offered to Surrey County
Council, apologise for her Government’s misleading suggestion that there
had been no such deal and ensure other local councils get the same treatment.”

Ends 

Sarah Champion MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Women
and Equalities, responding to an expected budget announcement of funding to
mark the centenary of the 1918 Representation of the People Act, said:

“Labour
is pleased that funding will be provided to mark the centenary of the 1918
Representation of the People Act.

“It’s
right that we mark and celebrate the achievements of so many women who risked
their homes, families and freedom to fight for democracy and economic equality.

“However,
99 years later, women are still having to fight for economic equality under
this Tory government. From cuts to universal credit and 54,000 women
losing their jobs through maternity discrimination, to the treatment of
thousands of women born in the 1950s who have been left with a crisis in their
retirement planning, this government is systematically turning back the clock
on gender economic equality.

"Labour
is committed to conducting a gender audit of all our financial statements in
government and to bringing forward an Economic Equality Bill to address the
structural and cultural barriers that prevent women achieving their full
potential.”

Ends

Editor’s
Notes:

1. Analysis conducted by the Department for Business,
Innovation and Skills and the Equality and Humans Rights Commission estimated
that up to 54,000 women every year are forced out of work due to maternity
discrimination

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/managing-pregnancy-and-maternity-workplace/pregnancy-and-maternity-discrimination-research-findings

2.Independent
House of Commons analysis has shown that as of the 2016 Autumn Statement, 86%
of net savings to the treasury through tax and benefit measures since 2010 have
come from women

Pre-Budget Statement from the Shadow Chancellor

Speaking ahead of the Budget, the Shadow Chancellor has demanded
that the government finds the funding our NHS and social care needs, and that
he must not make women bear the brunt of Tory economic policies as they have
for the last 7 years.

In addition, he said that the chancellor cannot risk building
our economy on the shaky ground of a WTO deal that endangers jobs and growth.

He also, calls on the government to deal with the rising cost of
living, and tackle the problem of chronic low pay for many working families in
our country.

John McDonnell MP, Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, said:

“Philip Hammond’s first Budget comes at a crossroads for our
country ahead of the triggering of Article 50. It cannot be a Budget, where
like his predecessor, he over claims on the government’s economic record, and
under delivers on its promises.

“That is why it is vital he must use his first Budget tomorrow
to provide the adequate funding our NHS and social care system desperately
needs.

“The Tories say they are on the side of working families, but
they are going ahead with cuts to in-work benefits, and presiding over an
economy where six million people earn less than the living wage, and four million
children are in poverty.

“The Budget falls on international women’s day; and although it
is great we have a female Prime Minister, Theresa May has supported every tax
and benefit change in the last seven years, which has meant 86 per cent of the
cuts have fallen on women.

“Therefore, Philip Hammond needs to ensure that his first Budget
breaks with this terrible statistic, and works for women, not one that makes
them bear the brunt of Tory tax giveaways for a wealthy few.

“Finally, the Chancellor cannot risk building our economy on the
shaky ground of a WTO deal that risks jobs and growth, so he must now rule this
out and commit not to turn Britain into a tax haven off the coast of Europe.

“Labour is opposed to any Tory Brexit deal that favours tax
dodgers and the big banks, and would force working families to pick up the tab.

“The Chancellor has to ensure his first Budget is a break from
the past, and not a continuation of the same failed economic policies of the
last seven years.”

Ends