London– British MP and Labour Party leader, Virendra Sharma, has condemned the Government’s budget saying that “it has failed to properly tackle the coronavirus, climate change and the crisis in social care.”

These three crises follow a decade of decline and cuts under the Conservatives, with life expectancy stalling, homelessness rising, rampant regional inequalities and a lack of preparedness for the coronavirus outbreak, the veteran MP said.

In responding to the budget, Mr Sharma said, “This budget has failed to deliver solutions to the problems facing Britain today. Ten years of Tory Government have left us unprepared to face coronavirus, climate change, and the crisis in social care.”

“Boris Johnson is a part-time Prime Minister and the government is offering hollow promises and half-measures. This Budget offers none of this and risks another five years of disappointment. This Budget is not an end to austerity, has not delivered investment, and has not delivered security for workers,” he added.

The last ten years have left us unprepared for coronavirus, our NHS is creaking, workers’ rights and our welfare system has been eroded and stagnant growth has left our economy vulnerable. Staggeringly, there was not one mention of social care in the Chancellor’s speech today, the Labour MP said.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies has reported that a further £54 billion of current spending is needed to return departmental spending per head to 2009/2010 levels – austerity will be “baked in” to the economy, as the IFS says.

The Chancellor must do more to prepare for the immense economic damage that could be caused by coronavirus, including by adopting Labour’s five-part economic plan on the virus.

There is an urgent need for an end to austerity and Universal Credit, a reversal of tax cuts to the rich, and an end to the scandals of privatisation and outsourcing, Mr Sharma said in a statement.