JULIE ELLIOTT MP: After 13 years of Conservatives in power they are out of ideas - we need a change

We have had 13 years of Conservative government; we are in a much worse place than we were when they came to power.

In this Budget, we needed to see a Government with ambition, a Government that believes in the country and its people: we simply did not see that.

Inflation and the cost-of-living rocketing, schools and hospitals crumbling, waiting lists endless, wages stagnating and growth the lowest in the G7 since the pandemic – this is a budget of sticking plasters, that does not do enough.

Whilst there is a small amount of investment in Sunderland and the wider region, the Government has proved that it does not have a nationwide strategy for sustainable growth.

The incredible transformation we are seeing in Sunderland, with investment in the film industry, infrastructure and culture is being led by the local authority.

The Government likes to make headlines with big announcements on childcare, but this is in the context of a system which they have underfunded, leading to staff being overworked, parents find services are unavailable, and in the end, it is children that suffer.

The promises in this budget are not even going to take effect until after long after the next General Election.

Childcare is an issue that Labour have been demanding action on for years; it is clear that the system is broken, but adding a few hours here and there is not going to work.

It is great that the Conservatives have decided to listen to Labour’s priorities, but they have not gone far enough.

We need wholesale reform to an early years and education system, after the Government have underfunded and neglected the sector for so long.

This is a budget too, that does not deal with the fundamental cost of living crisis. Families in Sunderland are still going to suffer from the Conservative’s mismanagement of the economy, and this budget sees the biggest tax cuts handed to some of the wealthiest people in the country.

It is a budget of sticking plasters, still trying to correct the disastrous Truss budget; the Conservatives are in chaos, and when they’re not trying to take Match of the Day off air, they’re holding our economy back instead.

Labour will bring in long-term solutions to fix the problems Britain faces, and spread power, wealth and opportunity across the country, not just to the few.

After 13 years of Conservatives in power, they are out of ideas. We need a change.