The UK enters recession but Cornwall's pain is yet to come

On the day that the UK enters into recession and the double dip recession has arrived it is worth noting how the government's latest budget will really harm Cornwall. I already touched upon the fact that the budget holds no good news for Cornwall, unlike other areas we will not see any additional infrastructure here. Instead we have just bad news upon bad news.

On this blog I have wrote a lot about pasty tax, on This is Cornwall this week they have revealed research by Francis Clark Accountants that the tax will cost Cornwall an estimated 30 million pounds and risk 400 jobs. This is a problem not just for bakers but also for our farmers who produce the top quality ingredients in our favourite dish.  Of course the other great loser in this is you and I, the ordinary people of Cornwall and tourists who will pay more for pasties. Good news for the treasury and their coffers, awful news for one and all in Cornwall.

Then there's the caravan tax. The government is also planing on applying vat to the price of static caravans. This means that the price of caravans will rise, adding more money to ordinary people's holidays. So this will make holidaying in Cornwall less competitive with the continent and leave tourists less money to spend when they are down here and of course less money for pasties. It also means Cornish people going on caravan holidays elsewhere will have less to spend.

The pasty tax was not the only knife heading for Cornish voters backs, the government is also going to introduce regional pay (localised pay) which basically means depressing the wages of places like Cornwall for public sector workers. Teachers, nurses, fireman etc will be paid less here in Cornwall than say London despite the fact they will be doing the same job. Much like the pasty and the caravan tax, this is central government taking money out of the Cornish economy and out of the pockets of people here in Cornwall.

The economic outlook is bleak we are now in a double dip recession, but the future for Cornwall is surprisingly worse, by taxing pasties, caravans and taking pay out of our workers pockets, Westminster is in effect taking millions out of the Cornish economy. There's no indication at all that any of this money would find it's way back here, I'd love to be wrong but it's obvious that Cornwall is heading for a deep recession at the hands of the London treasury and to it's benefit. Quite what Cornwall has done to be so shabbily treated by the Conservative and Liberal Democrat government, I don't know.

It's worth noting that pasties soon will be taxed at 20% yet caviar isn't, caravans will be taxed at 20% yet second homes aren't, regional pay will apply to the rank and file but not senior management.