As budget nears, faith in government ‘on a knife edge’ – even in Preston, a Labour stronghold! B
Confidence in Sir Keir Starmer’s government is slipping among the shoppers and market traders in one Lancashire city, and, despite the area being a safe Labour territory, expectations for Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ first budget on Wednesday are low.
Budget hopes are low at Preston Market
The dramatic iron canopy over Preston Market has been sheltering shoppers for nearly 150 years.
Even inside the stylish indoor market, which opened six years ago, the trading history of this Lancashire city is palpable.
Old posters remember the Christmas markets of 1902.
“A lot of people have been coming here for a long time,” says Derek Cheetham, owner of the market’s Cherry Pie Coffee & Co.
“It is a religious thing for them to do, to go to Preston Market.”
They have seen plenty of budgets come and go here but, in a seat that has been safe Labour territory since the end of the Second World War, the party’s first budget in recent memory is a significant moment.
“I think it’ll make or break them,” says Valerie Sergeant, owner of Wise Buys Hair and Beauty, adding, “they have to help the middle classes.”
For traders and shoppers alike, the government’s controversial decision to change the winter fuel allowance for pensioners has made many wary of what new economic pain might lie ahead.
“I think we’re on a bit of a knife edge,” Mr Cheetham said.
“They’ve obviously got issues to solve, I think everybody knew that. They’ve tried to make it sound worse than we all thought it might be, probably so that when they make tough decisions, they’ve got a good excuse for it. I don’t think everyone’s buying that, to be honest.”
Like many of the small business owners in the market, he is concerned about the prospect of an increase in national insurance contributions for employers and changes to pensions.
“Most small businesses are not making huge amounts of money. Every time the government puts another cost implication in there the only people it hurts generally is the workers.”
Salman Ahmed, who switched from selling fashion to joining his brother’s Indian food stall Chacha’s, agrees.
“We’re not struggling, we’re coping, we’re alright, we pay the bills and take some money out for us. This budget looks like it is going to be financially a burden on the employers and this is going to be more pressure and we’ll feel it.”
Why are businesses nervous about the budget?
By the Halloween display, a queue forms for the nearby bakery.
Some people offer a brusque “no comment” when asked about what they want from the budget.
They are similarly dismissive of Labour’s first months in office.
“It is heartbreaking to see that old fella there saving up his 1p and 2p coins so he can buy his grandson something for Christmas. He’s going to get nowt in the budget,” says one frustrated woman.
David Maudsley, owner of Sheridan’s Bags and Bags, said: “I think the country is in limbo at the moment.
“Can it be as bad as they have really portrayed? Hopefully not. But there’s no light at the end of the tunnel until after the budget.
“In a nutshell, people are saying, ‘this is not what we voted for’. A number of people have said exactly the same to me. We didn’t vote for this and I’m not sure what we were voting for exactly.”
At Bossy Boots shoe stall, Peter Walls is even more blunt. Since the election, he says, the country “has been a mess”.
As for the budget, he says, “there’s a lot of fear, there’s a lot of worry out there.”
In this staunchly Labour area there are plenty who want to give the government time on the economy but, even here, the challenges of everyday life mean patience is short.
In his 70s, Adrian Livesey is still running the butchers he started four decades ago. I asked him if the people of Preston still have faith in the Labour government.
“They have but it is waning. We get people in here all the time saying ‘hey, it’s not took them long, has it? It’s not took them long to go back on their pledges’.”
