Brown's budget offers little new especially for pensioners

9.01.00pm GMT Wed 16th Mar 2005

Gordon Brown's eighth Budget has offer very little new, which either means that he is expecting to have to raise taxation after the General Election or he is too scared to do much now.

The good news was the doubling of the level at which house buyers pay stamp duty to £120,000 and providing free off-peak local bus travel - both already Liberal Democrat polices! He also offered a £200 Council Tax bribe for pensioners but nothing extra fro pensioners - the Liberal Democrats of course want to abolish Council Tax and replace it with a Local Income Tax and replace and also increase the basic state pension by £100 a month for pensioners over 75.