Against a background of repeated claims by the Prime Minister that the country’s finances were strong, and of economic expansion, it was clear that families in the country were expecting to benefit from this, MLP deputy leader Charles Mangion said.

He was referring to the expected publication today of the pre-budget document. To date, Dr Mangion said, families were feeling only the rising cost of living, the burden of rising medicinal prices and costs of essential services, and lack of job opportunities.

The latest statistics from Eurostat confirmed that the real income of the average worker had dipped regularly between 2003-06. And while families were experiencing this, the government had in the last four years raised the taxation burden so much that it took it up among the highest in the European Union while at the same time it was failing to control inflation.

In the light of all this families by right expected an improvement, led by an increase in children’s allowances, a cut in income tax, less bureaucracy and sustainable incentives for anyone starting a business or seeking expansion.

Young couples crippled by the burden of loans on houses expected serious initiatives to ease the interest rate burden. And the Prime Minister’s fine talk about strong finances confirmed even more strongly the Labour Party’s argument that the energy surcharge should be cut by half.