TORY BUDGET LEAVES NORTH AYRSHIRE HOUSEHOLDS FACING BIGGEST FALL IN LIVING STANDARDS ON RECORD

77% OF PEOPLE NOT CONFIDENT WESTMINSTER BUDGET PROVIDES ENOUGH HELP TO TACKLE RISING COSTS

SNP MSP for Cunninghame South, Ruth Maguire, has said “families are seeing their incomes hammered under Westminster control” – as analysis shows the UK is set for the biggest fall in living standards on record.

Following last week’s spring budget, a YouGov poll has found that 77% of people do not have confidence that the Westminster’s budget will provide enough help to tackle the cost of living.

Analysis following the Tory budget shows:

• The UK is expected to suffer the biggest fall in living standards since records began in the 1950s – with real household disposable income (RHDI) expected to fall by 5.7 per cent over 2022-23 and 2023-24 (Source: OBR)

• Most people are expected to be worse off in 2027 than they were in 2019 – with real incomes still expected to be lower in 2027-28 than 2019-20, and the typical household expected to be worse-off by £694/year by 2027-28 as a result of Tory government policies (Resolution Foundation)

• Households will pay an extra £67 a month for energy bills – after the Chancellor scrapped the Energy Bill Support Scheme with immediate effect.

• Brexit is forecast to deal a 4% hit to UK GDP – with UK imports and exports expected to be 15 per cent lower than if the UK had remained in the EU (Source: OBR)

• The UK is set to suffer slower growth this year than any other major economy, including sanction-hit Russia (Source: OBR)

Commenting, SNP MSP for Cunninghame South, Ruth Maguire said:

“Scotland is a wealthy, energy-rich country but families across Cunninghame South are seeing their incomes hammered under Westminster control – and the UK economy is slumping behind.

“With Brexit costing the UK billions of pounds in long-term damage, and families facing the biggest fall in living standards on record, it’s clear Scotland needs independence so we can build a strong, fair and prosperous economy.

“Neither the Tories or the pro-Brexit, pro-cuts Labour Party are being honest about the damage their policies are doing to Scotland. There’s a reason the UK is expected to have slower growth than any other major economy – including sanction-hit Russia.

“The SNP government will do everything it can to support people’s incomes, including progressive policies like the Scottish Child Payment – but with no change on offer at Westminster, Scotland needs independence to deliver the real change people across Cunninghame South need.”