Liz Saville Roberts ‘disappointed’ following talks with UK Government ahead of Budget
On Tuesday 11th November, Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Leader, Liz Saville Roberts MP met with the Secretary of State for Wales, Jo Stevens MP to set out Plaid Cymru’s calls ahead of the Autumn Budget later this month.
The meeting was secured following Ms Saville Roberts’ request to the Secretary of State during Wales Questions (29th October) for a meeting where she asked to discuss Plaid Cymru’s proposals for a “fairer, more ambitious UK Budget – one that actually works for Wales”.
Following the meeting, Ms Saville Roberts said that it was “disappointing” that the Secretary of State “seemed obsessed with constitutional matters” ahead of the budget when Plaid Cymru was “focused on tackling the cost of living and ensuring our communities the investment they deserve”.
During the meeting, Plaid Cymru demanded:
- Full consequential funding from HS2
- Action on energy bills
- Pause APR and BPR changes
The classification of HS2 as an ‘England and Wales’ project is denying Wales of at least £4 billion in consequential funding based on the latest cost of the project of £80 billion. When Ms Stevens was the Shadow Secretary of State for Wales in 2022, she herself called on the UK Government to deliver the “missing £4.6 billion of rail funding for Wales” – a position on which she has since rowed back. Ms Saville Roberts called on the UK Government to provide Wales with full consequential funding from HS2.
Average household energy bills in 2024–25 are £1,850, up 37% from 2021–22. Households across Wales are affected by this issue with 25% of Welsh households (340,000) in fuel poverty. A contributing factor to this is standing charges, with households in north Wales paying the highest standing charges in the UK (£255.32 a year vs. £139.80 a year in London). Plaid Cymru urged the Secretary of State for Wales to act on this to help people across Wales directly through the removal of VAT from household energy bills and address the high cost of standing charges in Wales compared to the rest of the UK.
Plaid Cymru also demanded that the Secretary of State pauses the changes to Agricultural Property Relief (APR) and Business Property Relief (BPR) until a full impact assessment of the effect on small and family businesses in Wales has been carried out. Wales stands to be among the hardest hit from these changes, with Family Business UK estimating a loss of £580 million in GVA as well as 9,715 well-paid Welsh jobs. This comes in the context of new job figures which show that Wales has seen the largest fall in employment and the biggest rise in unemployment anywhere in the UK, showing that the UK Government’s changes risk undermining the very growth that they claim to be their priority for the UK economy.
Speaking after the meeting, Liz Saville Roberts MP said:
“I am glad to have met with the Secretary of State for Wales today to discuss Plaid Cymru’s proposals ahead of the Autumn Budget and to demand better for the people of Wales.
“Rachel Reeves told us last week that we all have a duty to “do our bit”, but families in Wales have been doing just that for over fifteen years - paying more while wages have stagnated and the cost of living has soared. It’s now time for the UK Government to do its bit to improve the lives of people across Wales.
“Today, I set out Plaid Cymru’s clear and practical solutions to tackle the financial challenges facing people across Wales. From demanding the billions owed to Wales from the HS2 injustice to helping households with high energy bills, I urged the Secretary of State to stand up for Wales. However, while Plaid Cymru was focused on tackling the cost of living and ensuring our communities the investment they deserve, it was disappointing that the Secretary of State seemed obsessed with constitutional matters and political point-scoring on this critical point ahead of Labour’s second budget.
“Sadly, this proved to be a performative meeting rather than an opportunity to find common ground for the benefit of all our communities.”
- ENDS -
EDITOR’S NOTES:
The Plaid Cymru Westminster leader also called on the Secretary of State for Wales to ensure that the UK Government fully covers National Insurance Contributions costs for councils in Wales. Only 85% of the costs for local authorities are being covered in Wales, unlike English councils which are covered in full. This left the Welsh Government to partially fill the gap from its own reserves, but it could not match the full cost, leaving councils facing a £36 million shortfall.
Ms Saville Roberts urged Ms Stevens to unfreeze the Local Housing Allowance. The Local Housing Allowance was re-frozen by this Labour Government but this is playing a significant role in causing and sustaining homelessness in Wales, and charities like Shelter Cymru note they are being held back by insufficient housing benefit for people trying to access and maintain a home in the private rented sector.
Last week, the Chancellor delivered a speech ahead of the Autumn Budget on 26 November, outlining that we must all “do our bit” to help with the UK Government’s difficult financial situation, suggesting that Labour will break their manifesto pledge not to raise income tax. Plaid Cymru is calling on the UK Government to create a fairer taxation system with the implementation of a wealth tax, believing that those with the broadest shoulders should pay their "fair share". This would be a 2% annual tax on wealth over £10 million to bring in a revenue of £24 billion every year.
Jo Stevens called for HS2 funding in 2022: Rail Infrastructure - Hansard - UK Parliament
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