Chancellor's spring statement met with mixed reaction in West Midlands

Chief Executive of the West Midlands-based Manufacturing Technology Centre, Dr Clive Hickman, welcomed the announcements made by Mr Sunak yesterday, which he says outlines concrete steps to ensure that the West Midlands manufacturing sector remains competitive, sustainable, and resilient.

"The Government’s commitment to cut tax rates on business investment will boost manufacturing productivity and create high-quality jobs," he said.

"In addition, the reform to R&D tax credits is a very positive step that will enable the scheme to be more effective, better value for money, and more generous. These measures will be crucial to spur innovation and encourage investment across the region.”

Stuart Anderson, MP for Wolverhampton South West, also welcomed the measures outlined in the statement.

He said: "I welcome the Chancellor’s spring statement, which combines immediate assistance with the cost of living with a long-term plan that will cut taxes for millions of workers, savers, and pensioners at the same time as we continue to invest in regeneration, transport, and culture.

"The cut in National Insurance, for example, will benefit nearly 30 million workers – saving the typical employee over £330. This will help my constituents across Wolverhampton as our recovery from Covid-19 gathers pace.”

Alan White, the leader of Staffordshire County Council, added: “We are investing hundreds of millions of pounds in Staffordshire’s business, digital and education infrastructure so that new and existing employers can thrive here with a skilled workforce on the doorstep, but there’s no doubt that rises in energy, fuel and materials are affecting businesses and hampering post-pandemic recovery, as well as making a real difference to the day-to-day lives of residents.

“Therefore, I welcome the Chancellor’s decision to cut the price of fuel and make another allocation of the Household Support Fund, which this year has been worth £5.5 million to Staffordshire residents, as well as promising future income tax cuts for workers, help for small businesses and more incentives for companies to invest in research and development.

“While the increase in the threshold for National Insurance is good news individually, that means the treasury will receive less money overall from that direction.

“As part of that NI income is earmarked for the future provision of social care as we try to move the funding burden away from local authorities, I would be anxious to ensure that there is still enough available for a meaningful reform of the current situation, which sees councils spend the largest proportion of their budgets caring for the vulnerable.”

Other organisations said the measures didn't go far enough to offer much-needed relief to households struggling with rising living costs.

Andrew Bent, charity founder at The GAP Christian Family Centre in West Bromwich, said: "I don't know if people will really notice the 5p per litre off fuel duty because the fuel prices will probably continue to rise anyway.

"Any help is some help but it depends on how the relief is going to be shared out. It really comes down to the detail. It's whether the money and support goes to the people who need it.

"In Sandwell we have a lot of low earners who are really struggling.

"They might not be in a position to claim but are not in a job that pays well enough."

David McWilliams, sales director at BJS Haulage in Wednesbury, added: "5p per litre off the fuel duty isn’t going far enough to help as diesel has increased 8p over the past fortnight alone and up by almost 30p since the start of 2022.

"In recent months Ad Blue (which all our trucks use) has also increased by 100 per cent."