Boris Johnson’s budget policy: Out with the money – it’s never enough anyway

Britain has piled up record levels of debt in the pandemic. Premier Johnson is also planning expensive reforms. Even his own party fears that he cannot handle money.

Some conservatives in Great Britain are currently worried that Prime Minister Boris Johnson will deal with state finances the same way he does his private money – following the motto: “Always get out there, it’s never enough anyway”. There have just been investigations into the expensive renovation of his apartment, possibly financed by party donations.

Inflation could rise to four percent

And there is never enough in the state budget either – especially now. The Covid crisis has cost billions, more than 300 billion pounds, including aid and rescue funds. UK debt borrowing is at record levels, recent May figures show.

Ken Clarke, Conservative Party politician, was Treasury Secretary under Margaret Thatcher and fears that inflation will become the major risk for the next few years. This rose to 2.1 percent in May. Experts fear it could be four percent this year. Clarke therefore recommends: sustained growth, solid finances, under no circumstances push the debt further up.

Nursing reform costs a lot of money

But that is exactly what should not be so easy. Johnson has announced many reforms, and many projects cost money. There is, for example, state-funded care. Care for people in need at home and in nursing homes urgently needs to be reformed. According to media reports, the prime minister recently canceled a meeting with the finance minister and the health minister. Apparently there are disputes over how to finance the reform. Experts say ten billion pounds are needed.

Johnson categorically rejects tax increases. Now the reform plans are to be presented in the autumn. The social policy spokeswoman for the Labor Party, Liz Kendell, criticized the government’s inaction during a recent debate in the House of Commons and described the maladministration: In the past few months, two million applications had been rejected and tens of thousands had to sell their own houses to cover the costs of the To be able to raise care. And after the horror of the pandemic, nine out of ten municipalities would have to announce that they would cut their budgets for care.

Little additional investment in education

Many examples show just how much the costs of the pandemic are. To encourage students who had months of restricted tuition, education expert Kevan Collins, acting as their advisor, proposed a £ 15 billion aid package to the government. The government approved £ 1.4 billion and Collins resigned from his position.

Investments in education are particularly necessary, says Clarke, the former finance minister. He gets upset about unnecessary projects like a new luxury yacht that is supposed to go around the world as a platform for diplomatic and trade talks.

“Stupid Populism”

“That is stupid populism. The 200 million for a new yacht ‘Britannia’, that is not the problem, but it shows the symptom. There are people in the government seat ‘Number 10’ who think there is enough money there,” says Clarke . “Waving the Union Jack and sending yachts and aircraft carriers around the world would show what a great power we are. We have no money for that.”

And for Clarke it is also clear: So far, the Tories have always stood for solid financial policy. But at that point a question mark has to be set.