Regressive Budget

Another hole blown today in the Con-Dem Government's claim that the emergency Budget is progressive. This time by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

Their report concluded: "Once all of the benefit cuts are considered, the tax and benefit changes announced in the emergency Budget are clearly regressive as, on average, they hit the poorest households more than those in the upper middle of the income distribution in cash, let alone percentage, terms."

It also appears that the Treasury failed to do an equality impact assessment on their measures, as required by law. The Treasury minister being interviewed on Radio 4 this morning was desperately trying to avoid answering this question - and doing it very badly!

There is a very good analysis on the impact of benefit cuts in this month's Labour Research. This shows that the consequences of switching uprating to the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) alone will cut £5.8bn from benefits over the next five years. For example, if Carers Allowance had been uprated by the CPI rather than the RPI, carers would be £270 a year worse off.

Progressive? I think not.