THE Chancellor’s mini-budget was sadly even worse than expected.

The disgraceful lifting of caps on bankers’ bonuses was compounded by further actions, all of which threaten not just our economy but our society.

The pound is tanking, interest rates are rocketing and inflation is soaring. Yet the Chancellor’s actions fail to address them and instead we’re almost certainly going to see businesses go to the wall, unemployment rise and social issues, whether poverty, crime or addiction, worsen.

The only people to benefit along with the bankers were the super-rich. He’s taken from the poor to give to the rich and he’s providing for today by measures paid for by the young and future generations.

Attacks on trade unions and on those on benefits were unleashed. Yet workers are simply seeking a living wage. The actions against those on benefits will see further hardship imposed on those already suffering. Many that he supposedly is targeting are in fact unable to work through long-term health issues and might well include many suffering from long Covid. That’s just despicable.

The Chancellor stated that tax wasn’t just about raising revenue but addressing the economy. I stated to him that I agreed with that but also added that tax had a role in addressing the society that we want. The UK is already one of the most unequal societies in the developed world. This just escalates the gap between rich and poor.

Yet it’s well documented that more equal societies are better on almost every indice. They’re wealthier, healthier, happier with lower crime and better environments. It’s not communism, as these countries include the Scandinavian nations but also the likes of Canada and Japan.

Instead, it’s about a better, fairer and happier economy and society. These more equal countries are richer than ours in so many ways. It’s why we need independence and the ability to be able to establish a better and fairer society.