Phil Brickell

I will make some progress given the time limits that will be put in place on other Members. That finally put us on a strong footing to move on from the irresponsible and reckless chaos of Liz Truss’s mini-Budget and the litany of unfunded spending commitments left behind by the previous Administration, who had no intention of implementing them. I must remind the House of what Labour inherited from the last Government when the Chancellor walked through the doors of No. 11 just over a year ago: a national debt at nearly 100% of GDP—the highest since the 1960s; living standards falling for the first time since the 1950s; anaemic growth that left us second to last in the G7; and the UK as the only G7 country where the employment rate had still not recovered to pre-covid levels by the first quarter of 2024. That was the Conservative legacy—a legacy of economic mismanagement and a tax system weighed down by loopholes, complexity and underenforcement, so I will take no lectures on fiscal responsibility from the architects of that wreckage. We on the Labour Benches will not indulge the fantasy that the path to prosperity lies in slashing public services, making unfunded promises and claiming that we can borrow endlessly without consequences. Our constituents deserve better. This Government, led by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor, are getting on with what Labour always provides: a Government of service. First, let me address the abolition of the outdated non-dom regime. For too long, our tax code allowed the very wealthiest to live in this country and enjoy our services, infrastructure and rule of law but contribute only a token amount to the national purse. That ended, quite rightly, with this Government. The new residency-based regime is a matter of principle: “If you live here, you pay here.” Secondly, we have increased the rate of capital gains tax on share sales—not to punish wealth but to deliver fairness. Many of my constituents contact me to say that they see no reason why wealth—assets, and stocks and shares—should be taxed less than work. There is more to be done on that, but I welcome the measures that the Government have taken so far.