Yesterday, the Government doubled election campaign expense limits.

Today, they deliver an Autumn Statement which is expected to benefit their rich friends at the expense of the most vulnerable people in our society.

Funny, that.

Tax cuts for the rich, benefit cuts for the poor. It’s what they do, but it gets more and more sickening and causes so much more suffering every time they do it. The so called safety net barely exists any more.

Welsh Liberal Democrat Leader Jane Dodds has been setting out the priorities of the Party in Wales ahead of today’s Autumn Statement:

-Invest in our NHS, with a specific focus on providing funding for desperately needed dentistry services across Wales to cut down on waiting lists. Whilst also giving more school children access to preventative treatment through Design to Smile.

-Invest in our future by giving desperately needed funds to schools to tackle the school funding crisis so that they can help support children from low-income families to succeed and access vital resources.

-Invest in our economy by reducing business rates for small businesses through 2024-25.

-Support people with the cost of living by taking direct action in supporting people struggling to keep a roof over their head by providing further financial support.

The party lashed out at the UK Conservative party for their systematic mismanagement of the economy that has dragged Wales down , while simultaneously demonising those who need the most support by threatening to remove desperately needed services to the sick and vulnerable.

Jane said:

In the wake of the upcoming Autumn statement, we as a party have laid down what we want to see prioritised for Wales.

In a nutshell, we want to see investment. We want to see investment in our NHS, investment in our economy and an investment in our future.

Our NHS is in a dire state here in Wales, particularly in regard to our dentistry services. We must focus on providing funding for desperately needed dentistry services so that we can cut down on waiting lists.

We also need to invest in our economy by slashing rates for small businesses while at the same time ensuring that our schools are receiving funds that go directly to supporting children from low-income families.

We also need to help push people out of this cost-of-living crisis, behind every single statistic on homelessness is a person that needs help. We as a country must ensure that people struggling to keep a roof over their heads are being supported as much as possible.

In this year’s Autumn statement, instead of going after big banks and oil and gas giants, the Tories have decided to go after those most vulnerable in our society.

In the middle of a cost-of-living crisis, they have provided no support for struggling families.

We cannot let the Tories shake the narrative to suit them best, we cannot forget the damage that has been done.

The Conservatives, through all their chaos and mismanagement, have left our country teetering on the brink with an economy that has seen practically zero growth.

Instead of offering a helping hand to drag people out of the cost-of-living crisis, the Tories have instead raised taxes for those who cannot afford it while at the same time cutting taxes for those who can afford it.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings. You can find her on Bluesky at caronmlindsay.bsky.social