TORY BUDGET LEAVES MIDLOTIHAN AND EAST LOTHIAN HOUSEHOLDS FACING BIGGEST FALL IN LIVING STANDARDS ON RECORD

77% OF PEOPLE NOT CONFIDENT WESTMINSTER BUDGET PROVIDES ENOUGH HELP TO TACKLE RISING COSTS  
 
SNP MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Colin Beattie, has said "families are seeing their incomes hammered under Westminster control" - as analysis shows the UK is set for the biggest fall in living standards on record. 
  
Following last week's spring budget, a YouGov poll has found that 77% of people do not have confidence that the Westminster's budget will provide enough help to tackle the cost of living. 
  
Analysis following the Tory budget shows: 
  

• The UK is expected to suffer the biggest fall in living standards since records began in the 1950s - with real household disposable income (RHDI) expected to fall by 5.7 per cent over 2022-23 and 2023-24 (Source: OBR)  
• Most people are expected to be worse off in 2027 than they were in 2019 - with real incomes still expected to be lower in 2027-28 than 2019-20, and the typical household expected to be worse-off by £694/year by 2027-28 as a result of Tory government policies (Resolution Foundation)  
• Households will pay an extra £67 a month for energy bills - after the Chancellor scrapped the Energy Bill Support Scheme with immediate effect.  
• Brexit is forecast to deal a 4% hit to UK GDP - with UK imports and exports expected to be 15 per cent lower than if the UK had remained in the EU (Source: OBR)  
• The UK is set to suffer slower growth this year than any other major economy, including sanction-hit Russia (Source: OBR) 

  
​Commenting, SNP MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Colin Beattie said: 
 
"Scotland is a wealthy, energy-rich country but families across Midlothian and East Lothian are seeing their incomes hammered under Westminster control - and the UK economy is slumping behind. 
 
"With Brexit costing the UK billions of pounds in long-term damage, and families facing the biggest fall in living standards on record, it's clear Scotland needs independence so we can build a strong, fair and prosperous economy. 
 
"Neither the Tories or the pro-Brexit, pro-cuts Labour Party are being honest about the damage their policies are doing to Scotland. There's a reason the UK is expected to have slower growth than any other major economy - including sanction-hit Russia. 
 
"The SNP government will do everything it can to support people's incomes, including progressive policies like the Scottish Child Payment - but with no change on offer at Westminster, Scotland needs independence to deliver the real change people across Midlothian and East Lothian need."