Chancellor Rachel Reeves is gearing up for a major shake-up in government spending, with billions set to be slashed from welfare and other budgets. Mirror readers shared their thoughts with us on the proposed cuts.
As Chancellor Rachel Reeves is poised to announce a major shake-up in government spending – we wanted to know your thoughts.
Her plan is to cut several billion pounds from welfare bills and other government budgets in her upcoming Spring Statement later this month.
But not everyone’s on board with it, particularly when it comes to hitting the poorer members of society. The speculation is that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will bear the brunt of the cuts – with some even suggesting that Reeves could end up being remembered as “Labour’s Austerity Chancellor.” The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has already revised its forecasts, with global factors like inflation, the war in Ukraine, and higher borrowing costs weighing heavily on the numbers.
Readers were somewhat split when we asked Do you agree with Labour’s plans to cut welfare costs? A hefty 7,917 said no, while a sizeable 4,347 agreed with the cuts.
One reader, Rabbit 10, said: “It’s a hard one. The money needed has to come from somewhere if we are to believe Labour have inherited a huge bill from the Tories. Money has been given to Defence, and everywhere you look in our society there is a flaw.”
Gary Jemmett: “I don’t think people who have been on the dole for a long period of time and not in education and training programmes should receive any help from the tax payer including asylum seekers. They should be able to work until they have their asylum case heard then if they don’t succeed they are deported. Stamp duty only be on property over £500k then first time buyers have no Stamp duty to pay.”
Bernice57: “They don’t need to cut the benefits which are being given to help people who are really struggling to live in this unaffordable country. They just need to make the very wealthy and big corporations pay more tax. There are dozens of millionaires in this country who are begging this government and the last government to let them pay more tax to help the poorer people in society, but the government wont let them. That didn’t surprise me with the Tories. But it is shocking that a Labour government isn’t welcoming and embracing this offer. Labour is the second Tory government now.”
LucyRoberts37: “I agree with making certain people look for employment if they do not have proven medical issues. But there are others who have never worked and no intention of doing so. They are the ones who should be penalised.”
Notlefty1958: “Close tax loopholes and tax the wealthy. If they don’t like it, let them leave. They can’t take their property, also don’t let them sell any of their company products into this country. Let’s see just how patriotic these billionaires and millionaires are?”
Concha: “The Social Security system is riddled with fraud, this is the first issue Rachel as chancellor needs to solve. More stringent triple checks are needed.”
Why the shake-up?
A government source shared that “the world has changed a lot” since last October’s Budget, and the OBR’s forecasts will reflect this shift. They added, “People are watching that change happen before their eyes.”
In line with these shifts, Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall is drawing up reforms to cut down on sickness-related benefits and get more people into work. This, she argues, is essential to address the growing costs, which last year reached £65 billion – up 25% since before the pandemic.
Fire Brigades Union’s Steve Wright was pretty vocal in his opposition to the proposed cuts, saying: “Hard-pressed families must not be made to pay the price of nearly a decade-and-a-half of Tory mismanagement of the economy. The Chancellor must use her Spring statement to tax the rich to properly fund public services and increase pay. Rachel Reeves must not become Labour’s ‘Austerity Chancellor’.”
There’s still time to take the poll:
What do you think to reader responses? Do you agree with them? Speak your mind in the comments below.