Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Hinckley and Bosworth, said "Never has a Budget unravelled so much before a Chancellor even came to the Chamber. 

"Over the past few weeks, amid all the press briefings and kite-flying from the Treasury, we've seen £22bn wiped off the stock market in one morning, growth downgraded for every year of this Parliament, people withdrawing their pensions, companies pulling investment and a huge reduction in the number of people on payrolls.

"And now we get the Budget, and it is the nightmare before Christmas. Taxes raised yet again, and the Chancellor even admitted on the floor of the House that she has broken her manifesto commitments.

"Despite all the protestations and today's blame game, Rachel Reeves, in November 2024, said 'We don't need to raise taxes further... It’s now on us... We don't need to come back for more.'

"Yet, taxes have increased by £66 billion across the two Budgets. That is more than seven times what Labour told the electorate they would do last year.

"With unemployment up every month since Labour took power, business confidence through the floor and inflation at 3.6%, this is yet another hit to the British economy and public.

"The OBR report is damning; living standards down, growth down, productivity down, taxes up, spending up, borrowing up."