Portsmouth South’s Stephen Morgan MP has backed an amendment to reverse the Government’s decision to scrap the limit on pensions savings announced by the Chancellor last week.
The Labour Party has identified that only the richest 1% of people will benefit from this policy which will cost the taxpayer £1 billion.
Last week the Government announced the policy to remove the limit on how much people can build up in their pension pots over their lifetime. Previously, anything over £1.07m was subject to a tax charge of up to 55%.
Labour has argued that the right way to deal with the issues facing doctors who are retiring early is via a bespoke scheme, not through an expensive and untargeted tax cut.
The BMA have shown that a targeted doctor’s scheme could cost as little as £32m to implement, a fraction of the cost of these changes.
The amendment will be voted on today (Tuesday 21 March) following the Spring Budget.
In a speech to the House of Commons, Mr Morgan said this policy was wrong especially in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis when so many Portsmouth people are struggling.
Responding to the Government’s Budget, MP for Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan said:
“In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, it is stunning that the Conservatives think the best way to spend the public’s money is by giving it to the richest one per cent and their pension pots.
“At a time when Portsmouth families are struggling to heat their homes, local businesses are battling just to survive, and more patients are in pain on ever-growing waiting lists, it is vital that public money is spent appropriately.
“Labour has outlined how we would target the scheme at doctors, not through an expensive and untargeted tax cut. Our amendment would put worker’s first by reversing this one-billion-pound bung to the wealthiest.”
The City MP also criticised the government for failing to address the current NHS crisis and climate emergency in last week’s Budget.
In his speech in the House of Commons, Stephen Morgan MP said:
“From hearing the Chancellor’s comments last week, you would also be forgiven for thinking that the climate emergency is over.
“But the sad reality is the UK is being left behind in the global race for good green jobs.
“We urgently need a government that understands the scale of this problem and a government that can make Britain a clean energy superpower.”
The MP has recently met with local voluntary groups to encourage support to constituents during the cost-of-living crisis and has hosted events for local constituents to voice their concerns.
Mr Morgan will continue to raise these concerns in Westminster while continuing to support local initiatives that address the energy crisis in Portsmouth.
You can watch Stephen Morgan’s response to the Budget here.
