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Has Alistair Darling done enough to revive Labour’s electoral hopes?
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So how was it for you?
Chancellor Alistair Darling threw the dice in his pre-budget report in an attempt to bolster Labour’s chances of winning the general election in 2010.
From hitting bankers with a one-off bonus tax to lowering bingo duty, Darling played to the Labour heartlands, while hoping to win back voters who have been telling pollsters that they are done with Gordon Brown.
Other measures included the return of full value added tax in January, a 2.5 percent rise in the basic state pension, a 1.5 percent increase in child benefit, as well as help for small businesses and various initiatives to boost the government’s green credentials.
All this while admitting that the recession was worse than he had predicted, with the economy shrinking by 4.75 percent in 2009.
Not surprisingly Darling’s Conservative counterpart George Osborne wasn’t impressed, accusing the chancellor of “sleight of hand” and “sneaky fiddling”.
Let us know what you think of the Chancellor’s pre-budget report and whether it will resuscitate Labour’s electoral hopes?
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It was worth it to hear the screams of outrage from the bankers.
http://www.total-banker.com/london-banke rs-bonus-super-tax.html
Mr Darling did what all politicians do best and that is to play with numbers while keeping a straight face. And as for Osborne, that gentleman just can’t wait to leave the wings and go on stage where he will perform like no other.
But the applause and clapping will be slow and deliberate for the people still have the word “Expenses” ringing in their ears….. You see, it goes on and on and on…….
Thus far I,m a little uninformed in the matter of Brown, via his Darling, taxing bankers bonuses.
Is this a tax on the Banks, or on the recipients of the bonus? If it is the former, given that many of the banks involved are for the best part in public ownership the tax will then come out of the public purse.