I know people across our area will be pleased to see the Government taking another step to deliver its continued push to bring taxes down by cutting National Insurance another 2pc – meaning a further saving of £450 to someone earning the average salary of £35,400.
We know families have been feeling the pressure too, especially when it comes to looking after children. To that end I’m really pleased to see the Government building on its childcare reforms by raising the High-Income Child Benefit Charge threshold from £50,000 to £60,000 from April this year – supporting families with an average gain of up to £1,260 per year. A welcome boost!
Some argue all this comes with a risk to our services, but I was pleased to see the Chancellor make improving public sector performance a priority. Ever since I came to Parliament I’ve been calling for reforms to improve the day-to-day working of the NHS, be it from updating IT equipment to improving communications between hospitals and GPs. This £3.4bn fully-funded Productivity Plan is exactly the kind of change I’ve been calling for.
Couple this with the £24 million investment for the Hinckley Diagnostic Centre and HUNDREDS of millions for two new hospitals in Leicester, this is a further step in the right direction during difficult times. I’ll continue to use my medical expertise to push for further improvement to healthcare in Leicestershire and across the country.
