In this week's column on Biddulph Nub News, Moorlands MP Karen Bradley has shared her thoughts on the latest budget announcement.

Last week, the Chancellor delivered his Spring Budget where he announced £407 billion of support for families, jobs and businesses and the Government's plan that focuses on supporting people and businesses through this moment of crisis and beyond the end of the Prime Minister's roadmap out of lockdown.

I was pleased with many of the measures in the Budget such as the New Recovery Loans and a new Restart grant of up to £18,000 to help businesses as they reopen and I know that the extension of the business rates holiday will really help many local businesses to stay afloat in the coming months.

As many of you are aware, I have held many calls and roundtables with businesses in the Moorlands and have signed letters and lobbied the Treasury together with other MPs and All Party Parliamentary Groups for support for many sectors, particularly those in hospitality, tourism and the weddings sectors.

I was therefore pleased to see that some of the things I lobbied for were successful including the freezes on alcohol and fuel duties as well as the extension of the 5% VAT rate, although I have to say that I would have liked the Government to go further and extend the VAT cut to alcohol to support our local pubs.

I am pleased that furlough has been extended until the end of September and also welcome the extension of the temporary £20 Universal Credit uplift, which I have been lobbying for. I know that this will help many local people who are struggling during these difficult times.

Finally I am delighted that support for the sports, arts and culture sectors will also be increased by a further £700 million as they begin to reopen and that the Moorlands has been allocated £150,000 in the Levelling Up fund capacity funding.

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