Posted 19th March 2015
Every year there is a huge amount of excitement around the Annual Budget. Along with the autumn statement, the event is a landmark in the political calendar and is preceded by weeks of speculation how it will affect business and people’s standard of living.
Of course this is very important but policies to increase income and change taxes are only part of the picture. Income is an important part of our wellbeing but other things contribute as well. Health, security, education, culture, community relations and the environment all play a part and often inform people’s voting intentions.
Its time that we had a social value budget announced alongside the financial budget. Advances in measuring and valuing well being now make this much more possible.
This would give us more clarity on how government proposals are expected to affect other aspects of our lives. It would make it more transparent and easier to compare and debate alternatives.
A combination of the financial budget and a social value budget would bring government’s purpose, the wellbeing of citizens, into focus.