UK budget tipped as Labour's defining moment
Industry analysts in the UK believe British Chancellor Gordon Brown’s budget statement this afternoon could be a defining moment for the Labour Government.
The budget will be seen as spelling out how it intends to make good its election promises to improve public services.
Ministers are hoping that voters, fed up with crumbling hospitals and schools, are finally ready to accept higher taxes if it means better services.
Reports have suggested that the tax hikes could total between £5bn (€8bn) and £10 (€16bn) a year, to be phased in over a number of years.
The Budget will throw into sharp relief the differences between the main political parties with the Conservatives arguing that simply pouring in billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money will not save a state-funded NHS.
