'Disabled people need a fairer outcome'

For Nikki Roberts, it is nothing new for disabled people to be unfairly treated by the government.

They have been "severely impacted by austerity and cuts" over the last 15 years, said the charity worker, who is now worried about the impact Rachel Reeves' Spring Statement could have.

Ms Roberts has called on the government to work with the group she leads - Surrey Coalition of Disabled People - and other organisations to help produce a "fairer" outcome for disabled people.

A small business leader also told the BBC that the government should reverse some of its economic policies as they were having a negative impact on trade.

Ms Reeves earlier outlined a raft of cuts to benefits, some of which would affect disabled people.

Ms Roberts said she was "extremely concerned", as disabled people had already been "disproportionately affected by the cost of living crisis and the global pandemic".

She said: "These proposed changes will push more disabled people into poverty."

The Spring Statement also heard that The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) has downgraded predicted growth for this year from 2% to 1%.

Gary Hudson, the co founder of Surrey AI Centre, an artificial intelligence solutions company, was hoping for a better forcast.

"This is a tricky, tricky year for the smaller businesses in Surrey," said Mr Hudson, who also runs I Choose Local, a not-for-profit company which aims to help people with opportunities, apprenticeships, and training.

For him, it was decisions the Chancellor made in the Budget last autumn on workers rights, the minimum wage and the National Insurance rate for employers which are causing many of the problems.

"I think, talking to my business colleagues, the answer is clearly there needs to be a U-turn," he said.

"There needs to be more support given directly for the smaller businesses.

"Without it, if you continue on this path, that investment is not going to happen and what that really means is that not only are you losing that business investment critical to get people working, but you're also hitting the consumer confidence."

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