The Budget from the Chancellor of the Exchequer was 14 years in the making. Good things come to those who wait, but we could hardly wait any longer.

As the dust settles, it’s left to us to digest what this will mean for workers. For many, the budget brings relief with measures aimed at raising the minimum wage, using substantial tax increases to invest in public services and closing loopholes predominantly used by the wealthy. As usual, there were howls of derision from some in the commentariat with inaccurate, if amusing, declarations this was communism on corticoids or socialism on steroids. Truth be told, it was neither.

It was a start. A good start. In fact, the STUC went as far to say it was impressive and eye-opening and puts investment into our public services front and centre.

The Chancellor’s decision to raise £40,000,000,000 (40 billion) in taxes can hardly be considered chump change either. Yes, it could have been more; this budget didn’t introduce the new wealth and property taxes we so urgently need. A straightforward 2% tax on wealth on assets over £10 million could have raised £24 billion per year.

And while its correct that the Chancellor has revised her fiscal rules to count the Government’s financial assets, such as student loans, she could have gone further to include all assets that Government owns – such as buildings and transport infrastructure. As predicted, there has been a blip in gilt prices but nothing to suggest that these sensible measures to increase borrowing has outright spooked the markets.

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The investment led approach may not translate to OBR predictions of massive increases in growth, but if it ensures that more of that growth is achieved through productive higher wage activity as opposed to the low paid services sector, it will be worth far more for our future.

That is also why raising taxes to invest in public services was the correct course of action from the Chancellor. It would have been unforgiveable - socially and economically - should she have chosen otherwise.

Let’s cut to the chase: what the Tories did for years was play fantasy politics and fantasy economics to boot; a cosplay of a serious government that, towards its dying days, did nothing more than pander to the worst and most reactionary elements of their fringes.

Last week started to change that. Tax rises are generally unpopular but when the chips are down, I’m far more content to have a government that taxes and spends rather than cuts and slashes. 

When it comes to tackling inequality and promoting growth that is sustainable, how you spend tax revenue matters just as much as where you raise it from. This wasn’t a revenue raid by Rachel Reeves to prop up city bankers or stock market yuppies; it was a targeting of taxes on employers plus private wealth, private schools and private jets to pay for healthcare, education and social care. That was undoubtedly the correct call.

That’s before we mention the rise in the minimum wage. It doesn’t yet go far enough but it does prioritise younger workers, boosting their pay disproportionately higher than any other cohort and raising standards across the board. We’ll be holding the government to account to make sure it is a step on the pathway to realising a £15 per hour starting wage for all.

Coupled with the Employment Rights Bill, which gives workers greater access to collectively bargain for better rights and pay, we hope such measures negate any unintended consequences of the Chancellor’s rise in employers’ national insurance contributions.

But we’re not breaking out the bunting.

The continued cuts to social security represent a continuation rather than a reversal of Tory policies. This was the wrong approach from the UK Government that will bite hard on those who need support the most.

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Further, despite all the chat about cutting a penny off your pint, not one solitary penny could be found to help pensioners stave off the cold this winter by reinstating the winter fuel allowance to all. That’s before we even get on to the pernicious, cruel two child benefit cap that, to the UK Government’s shame, still remains in place. 

There is also a risk that Reeves’ current plans assume public investment falls in future years. This Budget needs to mark the start of sustained investment and support for public services and infrastructure – not just a one-off splash.

Still, the Chancellor has just handed down the largest block grant settlement in the history of devolution, even if it only partially compensates for years of neglect.


The predicted £3.4 billion can make a real difference to Scotland’s public services, boost workers’ pay and tackle longstanding issues across sectors, not least local government.

First to pass should be policies the Scottish Government said they wanted to enact but previously claimed they couldn’t afford to. We could subsidise public transport could for a start. We could feed hungry pupils by rolling out free school meals as was promised.  We could make real, concrete inroads to tackle climate change and achieving a just transition. Perhaps, more simply, we could pay local government workers fairly, settle the local government dispute and pay our carers fairly.

For the first time in a generation, there’s an opportunity for the Scottish Government to seize the initiative and reap the rewards of working alongside a UK Government that appears to respect devolution far more than the previous incumbents. Let’s end the Westminster/Holyrood blame game.

There is power in our parliament. There’s now a pot of cash that didn’t exist otherwise. But that cash should only be the start. If we want to have Scandinavian quality public services in Scotland – and we should – then we need to pay for them. If the Scottish Government start to use their own powers on tax, property and wealth, brighter days undoubtedly lie ahead and can make up for the 14 years of darkness we’ve all just had to endure.