• Inflation stats: Chancellor must put households and high streets first
• Lib Dems: Govt must go further and “ban surge pricing”
• PMQs: Kemi Badenoch should apologise for £40bn of Conservative stealth tax hikes
• Scottish Liberal Democrats call for World Cup fan parks and late night licenses
• Stone secures meeting with Treasury to save high street banks

Inflation stats: Chancellor must put households and high streets first

Responding to the latest ONS inflation figures released this morning, Daisy Cooper, Deputy Leader and Treasury Spokesperson for the Liberal Democrats said:

As the cost-of-living crisis rages on, the Chancellor mustn’t look this small gift horse in the mouth.

Hitting people with a stealth tax at next week’s Budget would prolong the pain of higher taxes for much longer and unfairly pull poorer pensioners and low-income workers into paying tax for the first time.

We Liberal Democrats are calling for emergency measures to slash people’s energy bills, save our high streets with a VAT cut for hospitality and boost growth in every corner of the UK – funded fairly by taxing the banks. The Chancellor must put households and high streets first and put an end to the most vulnerable from having to choose between heating and eating.

Lib Dems: Govt must go further and “ban surge pricing”

Responding to the government’s announcement banning the reselling of tickets for profit, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Culture, Media and Sport, Anna Sabine MP said:

Liberal Democrats are calling on the government to ban surge pricing – a practice that can see ticket prices skyrocketing for in-demand events, and require ticket resale platforms to verify that listed tickets actually exist before they are allowed to be sold.

So while this is a good opening act, let’s make sure the encore truly gives live events back to the fans, not the scalpers.

PMQs: Kemi Badenoch should apologise for £40bn of Conservative stealth tax hikes

The Liberal Democrats have blasted Kemi Badenoch’s hypocrisy on stealth taxes at PMQs, highlighting the £40bn stealth tax bombshell the Conservatives hit the public with during their time in office.

Between the stealth tax being announced in 2021 by the Conservatives, and the 2024-25 financial year at the end of the last Parliament, frozen income tax thresholds hit households with £38.7bn in total, according to figures from the OBR.

The Conservative freeze on income tax thresholds has meant that, by the end of the last Parliament, basic rate taxpayers had paid an additional £950 in total due to the freeze on the Personal Allowance, while higher rate taxpayers were hit with nearly £4,800, according to Liberal Democrat analysis of figures from the OBR.

Liberal Democrat Treasury Spokesperson Daisy Cooper said:

Kemi Badenoch should apologise for the years of stealth taxes put in place by the Conservatives if she wants to be taken seriously by the public.

The Conservative government she loyally served hammered families with years of unfair tax hikes.

Both Labour and the Conservatives seem intent on punishing the public with endless tax hikes, instead of turbocharging our economy with a closer trade deal with the EU.

Scottish Liberal Democrats call for World Cup fan parks and late night licenses

Scottish Liberal Democrats have called for huge fan parks to be set up across the country so fans can gather to watch Scotland’s World Cup games and for pubs to get special dispensation to show their matches in the event that they are scheduled for late at night.

The party says stadiums and parks could host huge screens to beam back the games from the USA, Mexico and Canada.

It has also called for pubs to be given special late night licenses to air Scotland’s games if it turns out that the time difference means they happen overnight.

Kick off times are currently expected to be 5pm, 8pm, 11pm and 2am.

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

After years of heartache, what a night and what a way to show we belong on the biggest stage of all.

Just think how many kids are going to be trying to recreate McTominay’s ludicrous overhead or McLean’s epic lob.

While a lucky few head over the Atlantic, the appetite for watching Scotland’s games back here is going to be off the scale. I want to see government and councils work together to give fans the best experience.

Huge fan parks could be set up across the country so we can gather to watch our games on the biggest screens in stadiums or parks. Pubs could be given special dispensation to show their matches in the event that they are scheduled for late at night.

What an achievement for Steve Clarke’s men and this generation of players. Let’s push the boat out at home so we can make the most of every twist and turn, and fingers crossed a few more wondergoals.

Scottish Liberal Democrat sport spokesperson Neil Alexander added:

I could see people packing into community sports clubs. After a tough few years for pubs and clubs, what an opportunity this is for the government to work with them to make the most of this amazing achievement.

Stone secures meeting with Treasury to save high street banks

Jamie Stone, MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, has asked the Prime Minister to update the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 to include an ‘Access to Banks’ provision to prevent the most vulnerable from being left behind, and ensure that banks fulfil their duty of service to their customers when it comes to preserving face-to-face banking.

Local bank branch closures have been particularly widespread in the Far North of Scotland, where the removal of the last Bank of Scotland branch in Golspie left the entire county of Sutherland without a single bank. More closures have now been proposed in the Ross-shire towns of Tain, Gairloch and Dingwall.

The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) ‘Access to Cash’ policy, published in 2024, introduced new rules for banks and building societies designated by the Treasury to ensure reasonable access to cash withdrawal and deposit services for consumers. However, this did not include the provision for these businesses to uphold their face-to-face banking resources – which is the vital service that Highlanders have repeatedly expressed their need for.

Mr Stone previously wrote to the FCA to ask them to reconsider and broaden their current ‘Access to Cash’ policy to include an ‘Access to Banks’ provision following the recent mass closure of local bank branches across the UK.

Responding to Mr Stone’s letter, the FCA explained that the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 gave them new powers to ensure reasonable provision of cash services – which took effect in September 2024. These rules require banks and building societies designated by the Treasury to assess and fill significant gaps in cash provision. However, Parliament decided not to include access to wider banking services within the same remit – meaning the FCA’s powers are limited by current legislation.

Consequently, Mr Stone has directly asked the Prime Minister for a meeting with the Treasury to discuss updating the Financial Services and Markets Act 2023 to include a legal ‘Access to Banks’ obligation for large banking groups.

In response, the Prime Minister agreed that he would ensure that Mr Stone got a meeting with the Treasury to look at his proposal.

Commenting, Mr Stone said:

We have legislation that ensures access to cash, but we do not have legislation that protects face-to-face banking services. This is causing my constituents considerable stress. Financial inclusion does not begin and end with cash access.

The presence of bank staff, advice services, and in-person problem resolution remains fundamental to maintaining financial confidence and ensures every community can connect with essential banking services, whether face to face, through shared hubs, or through guaranteed local support.

The Far North is vast and recent closures have unfairly disadvantaged many of my more vulnerable constituents – who don’t all have the means of using online banking and cannot simply drive to the next town in search of a bank branch.

We have a viable solution in changing the legislation, now I need the Chancellor and the FCA to take the necessary action to fix this problem for people all across the UK.