Bexhill and Battle constituency MP, Huw Merriman, has welcomed the Autumn Budget this week which has delivered additional money for the local NHS, East Sussex County Council, broadband and schools as well as helping working people with increases in the living wage and personal tax allowance.

Included in Monday’s budget announcements were a £20.5 billion for the NHS, an additional £1 billion of funding for local councils and help for local high streets and small businesses.

Huw said “I welcome this week’s budget from the Chancellor of the Exchequer which has demonstrated that this government’s commitment to improving the country’s financial stability has worked - the UK is forecast steady growth. This means that we can invest in the things that are so important to my constituents such as our local NHS services, schools, adult social care, children’s services and mending our roads.

We live in an area of low average wage so I particularly welcome the news that the National Living Wage will increase by 4.9%, from £7.83 to £8.21 an hour and the increase in the personal tax allowance to £12,500 from April 2019. This is help working people and taxpayers in the Bexhill and Battle constituency.

I am sure that our local high street retailers across Bexhill, Battle, Heathfield, Pevensey and the villages will welcome the cut in business rates for properties with a rateable value under £51,000. This will save 90 percent of local shops and businesses £8,000 per annum. The Chancellor also announced a £675 million Future High Streets fund which will invest in improvements to town centre infrastructure, reduce congestion, support redevelopment around high streets and enable housing and new workspaces to be created in place of empty shops. I look forward to discussing the potential of tapping into this for our local high streets with our local councils. This could make our High Streets smarter and more welcoming. 

I will also be working with our local councils to see whether the constituency can further benefit from the £500m for the Housing Infrastructure Fund, to deliver new homes and the infrastructure to sustain them. I see this as a potential fund to secure bypasses around Hurst Green and Little Common and would like to explore these ideas further.”