On Wednesday, Labour deliver their third Budget. It’s a new Chancellor, but the same party that’s promised not to raise your taxes and then did - by over £60 billion. So before the Chancellor stands up, here are the five tests his Budget has to pass. 1️⃣ Cut the deficit Labour are borrowing far more than the plan they inherited, and our national debt is now at levels last seen in the early 1960s. Every pound they borrow today is a bill your children and grandchildren will pay tomorrow, with interest. Money spent on debt interest is money that can’t go to local hospital, schools or our streets. A Conservative government would put half of every saving we find towards cutting the deficit. That’s what living within your means looks like. 2️⃣ Increase defence spending The world is more dangerous than it has been for decades. Your family’s safety depends on a country that can defend itself. But Labour still have no plan to get defence spending to 3% of GDP by 2030. The Conservatives have a fully costed plan to get there, including the Britannia Shield, a new national missile and drone defence system to keep Britain safe. 3️⃣ Tackle the youth jobs crisis Nearly a million young people are not in work, education or training. Job vacancies have fallen to their lowest level in over a decade outside the pandemic and Labour have made it more expensive for businesses to hire young people in the first place by increasing taxes on hiring. The Conservatives would create 100,000 more apprenticeships, halve employer National Insurance for 21 to 24-year-olds, and launch a new Get to Work programme, so young people get the start they deserve. 4️⃣ No new taxes Labour promised not to raise your taxes. Then they raised them. Now taxes are heading for a record high and the IMF says Britain is raising taxes faster than any other country in the Western world. Even Greece is forecast to cut theirs. The Conservative believe that what you earn belongs to you, not the government. That’s why we’d guarantee no Stamp Duty when you buy your home, no Mansion Tax while you live in it, and no Inheritance Tax when you pass it on to your children. 5️⃣ Get welfare under control The welfare bill keeps rising, while you’re asked to pick up the tab. A fair system protects people who can’t work. But right now, too many people who could work don’t. The Conservatives will build a fairer welfare system where everyone who can work, will work, so your taxes go further and work always pays. These 5 tests are what serious government should do. Keep taxes low, the country safe, get young people working, and stop spending money we don’t have.