The Liberal Democrats Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Hitchin has blamed the Tory party for handing constituents higher mortgage payments - thanks to the government's fiscal incompetence.

Sam Collins, who will fight current MP Bim Afolami for the Hitchin and Harpenden seat at the next General Election has slammed the Conservative government.

Collins criticised the party that has been in power for 12 years, blasting the Tories including the humiliated Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng and Hitchin MP Mr Afolami, who has not made comment on social media for nearly two weeks, following the latter saying that the chancellor's mini-budget 'shows how much potential Kwarteng and Truss see in the UK.'

Struggling new PM Liz Truss and already-discredited Kwarteng decided to ditch the cut to the 45% tax rate the night before the Tory party conference, when the scale of rebellion by their own MPs made it clear it would not survive a parliamentary vote – with many other tough battles to come.

"People I've spoken to are really concerned about being landed with higher bills, higher taxes and higher mortgage payments thanks to the government's incompetence," said Mr Collins.

"The Chancellor's out of touch and shambolic budget had been exposed as a reckless gamble, yet to my astonishment the MP for Hitchin said that he was 'reassured' by it. 

"The Conservatives had planned to give huge unfunded tax cuts mainly to the rich, while neglecting local health services and hammering ordinary people with years of tax hikes - Hitchin voters will not forget such economic vandalism.

"Mr Afolami should actually listen to the concerns from our community [from the] shambolic budget and back Liberal Democrat calls to support local people and businesses instead."

The Liberal Democrats are calling for, an expanded windfall tax on oil and gas giants, a scrapping of the planned cut to corporation tax , a scrapping of the planned lift on bankers bonus caps and a guarantee of support for businesses with energy costs for one year, not just six months, to provide greater certainty and freeze domestic energy prices at what they are now, instead of hiking them again next month.

The Lib Dems also demanding that the Government invest in a winter rescue plan for the NHS to recruit more doctors, dentists and paramedics.

Hitchin Nub News understands Mr Afolami had been out of the country on a 'charity event' but it is not known if he is attending the Tory Party conference today.