Ella Whelan: Government support package is 'just stay of execution'
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Boris Johnson faces only a minor breather over the rising cost of living crisis according to political commentator Ella Whelan. Chancellor Rishi Sunak and the Prime Minister have introduced a support package aimed at helping British Households stay afloat amid heavy energy bills. Ms Whelan has argued on GB News that without a broader economic vision the Conservative’s rescue plan will need revisiting in the not too distant future.
Ms Whelan told GB News: “The problem is if you have this kind of stay of execution, which essentially this is by means of a handout is very welcome and it’s unnecessary and he couldn’t have done anything else. I don’t often defend the Labour Party, but I think it is pretty ridiculous that the Conservative Party have basically played a political game.
“Everyone knew that we’re gonna go for the windfall tax they just didn’t want to do it.
She added: “But the bigger question is, all of this would be able to be absorbed and would be sort of less paltry and less frightening at the same time if there was a long term plan for economic growth, there was a long term plan on energy in terms of whether it’s nuclear power, fracking, whatever it is.
“But there’s none of that and so then this really is just a stay of execution. I can imagine we’ll be in the same place next year.”
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Mr Sunak has refused to rule out a further emergency cost-of-living package next year despite alarm among some Tories at the impact on the public finances of the latest measures.
The Chancellor responded to weeks of mounting pressure over soaring energy bills with the announcement of a £21 billion giveaway to households, partly paid for by a £5 billion levy on the profits of oil and gas companies.
In the Commons on Thursday he told MPs the Government could not “sit idly by” while families across the country struggled to make ends meet.
However, there was anger from some Conservatives, who said the “windfall tax” on the energy giants – which Labour had been pressing for since the start of the year – was “throwing red meat to socialists”.
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There were also concerns that a £400 discount on energy bills for every household in the country, regardless of how well off they are, would further fuel inflation which is already heading towards 10%.
Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said the impact of a one-off series of measures would be limited, and the Chancellor would come under pressure to repeat it in future years.
“I think the biggest risk here is that the Chancellor will be tempted to do this again and again. If that happens then we really could be in for a bit of trouble,” he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
“He has got the most extraordinarily difficult decisions to make later this year on public sector pay and then he will be under pressure, I suspect, come this time next year – when energy prices will still be high and households will be struggling – to put more money in.”
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Mr Sunak insisted he remained a “fiscal conservative” and was committed to managing the public finances “responsibly”, but he refused to rule out another emergency package next year.
“People can judge me by how I’ve acted over the last couple of years,” he told the Today programme.
“I’ve always been prepared to respond to the situation on the ground, what’s happening to the economy, what families are experiencing, and making sure we’ve got policies in place to support them through that.
“I do want people to be reassured and confident that we will get through this. We will be able to combat and reduce inflation, we have the tools at our disposal, and after time it will come down.”
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