POLL: Will Keir Starmer bring in wealth tax?
Sir Keir Starmer has declined to rule out a wealth tax. The Prime Minister would not deny that he will unleash a levy on the rich at the autumn budget during a PMQs clash yesterday.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch warned that "investors are fleeing the country" as a result of a potential "tax on aspiration". Her comment came after former Labour leader Lord Neil Kinnock suggested a wealth tax could "commend" the Government to the general public.
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Mrs Badenoch said: "He's flirting with Neil Kinnock's demand for a wealth tax. Let's be honest about what that means - this is a tax on all of our constituents' savings, on their houses, on their pensions, it would be a tax on aspiration. Will the Prime Minister rule this out?"
Dodging the question, Sir Keir replied: "What we did in the budget was stabilise the economy through the measures taken by the Chancellor, what has that led to? Four interest rate cuts, for mortgage holders that is hugely important - compare and contrast what happened to the Liz Truss mini-budget.
"The fastest growth in the G7 in the first quarter of this year. Wages up more in the first 10 months of the Labour Government than the 10 years under the Tories. So no, we don't need lessons from them."
Mrs Badenoch then said: "It is time for him to take responsibility for the mess he is making. He has been in office for a year, and all we see is him congratulating himself on what a fantastic job that he has done. Nobody out there believes it, not even them, not even them, what a weak cheer.
"He's congratulating himself. We can compare records. He talks about the fastest-growing economy. We left him the fastest-growing economy of the G7. We cut the deficit in every year until the pandemic. We got inflation down to 2%.
"On his watch, taxes are up, unemployment is up, inflation is up, and this weak Prime Minister has been forced into a series of chaotic U-turns."
Sir Keir also refused to rule out extending the income tax freeze beyond 2028 during PMQs.
express.co.uk
