On Monday, the Prime Minister outlined five new priorities for the government to address in coming months.

This builds on progress on the five priorities for 2023 he outlined in January, the most significant of which was halving inflation – which was achieved earlier this month. His new priorities are to: reduce debt; cutting tax and rewarding hard work; building domestic, sustainable energy; backing British businesses; and delivering a world-class education. 

These priorities bring welcome focus to the economy, and the sustainable growth we all wish to see. I do not anticipate a reduction of our absolute debt in the short-term, but growing our economy and reducing the deficit will ensure our debt-to-GDP ratio peaks and begins to improve.

As a conservative, I am keen to see the tax burden on families and businesses reduced, as soon as public finances allow. The impact of inflation remains a constant concern for the Chancellor’s balance sheet, but as the plan to tackle inflation continues to work, coupled with higher than expected tax receipts, there is more headroom for responsible tax cuts.

I write ahead of the Autumn Statement, so cannot comment on what measures the Chancellor has taken to safeguard our economic prosperity and ease the tax burden. But I and other Shropshire MPs met the Chancellor last week to discuss the challenges our county faces. I stressed the importance of measures to help the rural economy.

I was pleased the Chancellor was responsive to our calls to support British businesses, since they are the drivers of our economy, creating jobs and sustaining the tax base which pays for our public services. Unemployment in South Shropshire continues to fall, and it is important business has the right support to keep creating new jobs here.

Earlier this week, ahead of the Autumn Statement, we received some welcome news – reallocation of funding from HS2 means Shropshire will receive an additional £5.2m over the next two years to tackle the blight of potholes on local roads. It is up to Shropshire Council to allocate this extra resource, so I shall be pushing for the South of the county to get our fair share. If you have a particularly bad stretch of road, do make sure to report it to Shropshire Council, so it can be added to their programme of repairs.