The New Economics Foundation (NEF) has said the chancellor's
autumn budget was a step in the right direction but needed to go
further to protect households from the upcoming surge in prices
this winter.
Hannah Peaker, deputy chief executive of the New
Economics Foundation, said:
"As households prepare to be hit by a wave of price rises this
winter, the chancellor has shown the right instincts but not yet
the right scale.
"The £100 support with energy bills will provide some welcome
relief, but the chancellor could have been braver in the face of
what we are up against. The typical energy bill is set to rise by
over £400 in the first six months of next year, and the OBR has
significantly downgraded its forecast for average living
standards. It now expects no rise in real household disposable
income between 2024-25 and 2028-29.
"These challenging circumstances mean the chancellor may yet need
to come back in the winter with a further package of support for
households.
"The chancellor's decision to tax banks' bumper profits was the
right one, but he should have gone further than an extra 3% for
15 months. This, along with much-needed reforms to capital gains
tax, would have allowed them to introduce a National Energy
Guarantee, which provides every household with a cheap block of
energy to meet their essential needs.
"This budget was an opportunity to lower housing, energy and
transport costs, and to reform the taxation of wealth. This would
have helped get living standards back on track, and it would also
have eased inflation - reducing the likelihood of future rate
rises and giving the government space to invest in reviving our
NHS and other public services.
"Nobody expected the government to unravel 40 years of
neoliberalism in one budget and the prime minister is right to
want to make our economy work for the people who keep it afloat.
The upcoming ten year plan must now match that ambition with the
action this crisis demands."
