The UK Government's Fiscal Statement

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government – in the Senedd at 2:17 pm on 28 September 2022.

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Photo of Rebecca Evans Rebecca Evans Labour 2:17, 28 September 2022

I’m very grateful for that question. I can hear the Conservatives chuntering away behind me; I do admire the way in which the leader of the opposition is doubling down in his support for the UK Government, even though the markets—and everybody—are obviously making a response to it that is very different to that of the leader of the Conservatives. I have to say, I heard him saying that the OBR is only legally required to do two forecasts a year, but the OBR has offered to do a forecast; it said it would do it at any point after the introduction of the new Prime Minister, but they decided not to take up that offer. And we know why: because they knew what it would show. The fact that they haven’t done any distributional impact assessment of their work shows that they’re too embarrassed to show what the impact would be.

But of course, Wales has done that work. Wales Fiscal Analysis found that that 90 per cent of the gains made on Friday go to the top 50 per cent of the income distribution here in Wales, and 40 per cent of those gains go to the top 10 per cent, in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. It’s an absolutely disgusting budget and I’m amazed that there is a single Conservative who continues to support it.