The government’s spending review announced last week did not get much publicity, but assuming it gets through a disruptive parliament controlled by the opposition that is serving itself and not the people who elected them, we can look forward to greater investment in our public services.
We should never forget that the last Labour government bankrupted Britain. It has taken a decade to repair their damage and balance the books which was all resisted by Labour, but ten years of steady economic growth and getting spending under control now means the Conservatives are in a position to increase public spending.
While Labour continue to try and sabotage Brexit, the government is making a further £2 billion available to support businesses to prepare for Brexit. This extra funding will ensure our borders, ports and airports have the capacity and infrastructure they need for all outcomes.
On top of the existing additional recruitment for Sussex Police, £750 million is being made available nationwide to hire 20,000 extra police officers. Boris Johnson has made it a priority to give the police the powers and resources they need to keep our streets safe, so the Home Office is receiving a 6.3% increase to its budget.
Funding for schools will see major growth which will be very welcome in our local schools in Crawley. For the NHS, there will be a huge £33.9 billion cash increase for frontline services. There will also be an additional £1 billion for social care to support local authorities like West Sussex County Council who urgently need more funding to meet ever-rising demand.
Public spending will increase by an extra £13.8 billion for the people’s priorities. It is worth noting that for the first time since 2002, every single government department is getting more money. This is all good news for Crawley but we should never forget that all this additional investment relies on our strong economy, and most people recognise that only the Conservatives can be trusted with our economy. Others may make bold spending pledges but they can’t be delivered or sustained if they wreck our economy.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
11th September 2019