I've been watching the budget live on ITV and now some follow up on BBC. Interesting reactions all round. ITV were doing insta-math as Osborne was giving his speech, and as each proposal came out they put it into their system and we saw how much worse off each person would be; single-mum, low income family, middle income family and the pensioner. Interestingly the pensioner worked out as being £5 per year worse off, the difference between single-mum and the families is just as interesting.
Obviously VAT is a terrible tax, there is no debate on whether it is terrible, but let's remember what has been done to limit the damage of this tax; specifically the increase in income tax allowance.
The single-mum was £20 per year worse off. The low income family (earning roughly £15000p/a) was approximately £220 worse off and the middle income family (earning between £40-50,000p/a) would be approximately £480 worse off. I can only imagine how much worse off high income families/individuals will be. Because of the £1000 increase in the income tax allowance, the impact on those worst off (the pensioner and single-mum) has been, in all honesty, next to nothing. £20 a year works out at about 38p per week. Is the single mum really going to miss a mars bar per week?
I don't think it's as terrible a budget as some (read "Harriet Harman") might want you to believe.
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