ALISTAIR Darling turned the screw on the better off as the battle lines were drawn for the General Election

In his final Budget before polling, the Chancellor announced help for first time home buyers and young jobless people.

But he also unveiled a series of measures that will hit wealthier people, saying: “I believe those who have benefited the most from the strong growth in incomes in past years should now pay their fair share of tax.”

Other key points included:

3p fuel rise to be brought in three phases

2% rise on beers, wines and spirits

1% rise on tobacco

£4 rise in child tax credit

Winter fuel allowances extended

Mr Darling confirmed that the threshold for residential property stamp duty would double from £125,000 to £250,000 from midnight.

But, to cheers from Labour MPs, he also announced that the move would be funded by an increase in stamp duty to 5% for residential property over £1m from April next year.

There was further bad news for higher earners – already facing a 50% tax rate on earnings over £150,000 – when Mr Darling announced the end of some personal allowances.

He said that for people with incomes over £100,000 a year – the top 2% – the value of their personal allowances would gradually be removed.

See page two for reaction from Huddersfield people.

Conservative leader David Cameron dismissed the package, saying: “Labour have made a complete mess of the British economy and they have done nothing to clear it up.”

He added: “They have doubled the national debt and on these figures they are going to double it again.”

And taunting Gordon Brown, Mr Cameron said: “The biggest risk to the recovery is five more years of this Prime Minister.”

But the Tories faced an awkward moment when Mr Darling announced a deal to clamp down on tax avoidance in three countries including Belize, where Tory deputy chairman Lord Ashcroft is based.

He said: “We expect these deals to be signed within a few days – which is rather quicker than the 10 years it’s taken the front bench opposite to exchange information with the deputy chairman of their party.”

There was limited good news for motorists, who are already facing soaring fuel costs.

Mr Darling said he would stagger next month’s scheduled increase in fuel duties – with the tax rising by a just a penny in April with another penny in October and the final instalment of 0.76p due next January.

There were no shocks in general for drinkers and smokers. Duty on beer, wine and spirits will increase as planned from midnight on Sunday. Alcohol duties will also increase by 2% above inflation for two further years from 2013. Tobacco duty will increase by 1% above inflation and then increase by 2% in real terms each year until 2014.

But for cider drinkers Mr Darling announced a 10% duty rise above inflation from midnight on Sunday and he said that in September changes will be made to the definition of cider to ensure specific strong ciders are taxed more appropriately.

Mr Darling said that stronger than expected tax receipts meant that Government borrowing would be £167bn this year – £11bn down on the £178bn he predicted in December’s Pre-Budget Report.

HERE’S how the Budget went down in Huddersfield:

Chris Stern, of Paddock-based petrol retailer CJ Stern (Oils) Ltd, said a decision to phase in the 3p rise in fuel duty was “better than we dared hope for”.

Fuel duty will rise by 1p on April 1 followed by a further 1p rise in October and a final 1p increase in January, 2011.

“It was obviously done with one eye on the election,” said Mr Stern. “If the 3p duty rise had come in one fell swoop and the April inflation figures worsened, people would blame the Chancellor.”

Sam Watt, licensee at the Star Inn, Lockwood Road, said the duty hike would affect the livelihoods and careers of people working in pubs and local breweries.

She said: “The increases should have focused on spirits and alcopops which are behind the problems caused for the health service and the police – rather than punishing people in real ale houses that are well-run by responsible licensees.”

Junaid Ejaz, president of Huddersfield University Students’ Union, welcomed the announcement of an extra 20,000 university places to be made available this autumn – paid for out of a one-off £270m University Modernisation Fund.

He said: “Any cuts in the number of places for students would be disastrous when most of the students come from working class backgrounds.”

But he added: “We will have to wait to see what happens after the election. It will be down to the next government to decide the funding picture.”

Dr John Anchor, of Huddersfield University’s business school, said: “There is some good news in the budget, but the bad news is well and truly hidden.

“The Treasury is forecasting a fall in the deficit to £89bn by 2014-15, but there is no clear indication how that will be achieved.

“While we didn’t expect to see the cuts lit up in Technicolor, it hasn’t tackled the big issue of public spending and where the savings will come from.

Dr Andrew Mycock, senior lecturer in politics at the university, added: “The budget was not going to be an ill-judged giveaway.

“It was short on economic detail, but very detailed as a party political statement. Labour is looking to create clear ‘red’ water between themselves and the Conservatives.”

He added: “It is almost a phantom budget – and you get the impression Alistair Darling and Labour would be happy if it was all forgotten about by Friday.”

Steven Leigh, head of policy and representation at the Mid Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce, said Mr Darling seemed overly optimistic in forecasting growth of 3% to 2.5% for 2011-12 when many economists were predicting a 2% rise.

Mr Leigh welcomed a one-off cut in business rates for smaller firms and a doubling of the capital investment allowance.

But he said the chancellor should have reversed a 1% rise in National Insurance Contributions – which he branded a tax on jobs – and said the increase in fuel duty was an “avoidable burden” on firms struggling to emerge from recession.

Plans to spend £250m on motorways and £100m on road improvements did not go far enough to improve Britain’s transport network, he added.

Simon Broadbent, managing director of engineering firm Thomas Broadbent and Sons Ltd, was also disappointed in the decision on NICs.

And while he welcomed the one-year cut in business rates, Mr Broadbent said the budget had failed to help exporters struggling to get credit insurance.

Mr Broadbent described as “empty rhetoric” a pledge to award an extra 15% of central Government contracts to smaller firms, claiming: “Small firms cannot afford to tender for them in terms of meeting the criteria and doing the paperwork.”

David Butterworth, of Huddersfield chartered accountancy firm Wheawill & Sudworth, said: “We were not expecting huge changes, but there are a few positive things for businesses.”

Doubling the capital investment allowance for firms to spend on machinery, plant and buildings might encourage firms to expand as the economy comes out of recession.

And changes to capital gains tax relief might encourage people selling businesses to launch new enterprises and create new jobs.

But Mr Butterworth said a decision not to raise VAT or income tax rates had come as a surprise and would benefit businesses as well as bodies such as schools and charities