Labour plotting tax raid on wealthy amid mounting fears of entrepreneurs fleeing the country
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander insisted that working people will be protected but concerns are raised that investment in the UK could be hit.
1
The warning shot came as she revealed that a wealth tax wasn't spoken about 'directly' at a Cabinet away day at Chequers last week.
Ministers could launch a raid on savings, investments or property in a bid to raise cash.
But Ms Alexander insisted that 'fairness' would be at the heart of any decisions surrounding tax at the Budget taking place in the Autumn.
But the comments pave the way for the wealthy and middle-class to be hit by tax hikes to fill Chancellor Rachel Reeves' financial black hole.
Only last week, ex-Labour leader Lord Kinnock suggested a 2 per cent wealth tax on assets worth over £10 million.
It comes after the Office of Budget Responsibility told of the 'daunting' risks to the UK public finances amid soaring debt.
Ms Alexander told Sky News: 'I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn't recognise that at the Budget the Chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out.
'We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.
'We haven't put up income tax. We haven't put up VAT apart from taking away those VAT tax reliefs that people who send their children to private school get, and we obviously haven't put up employee National Insurance.'
Experts have said that the Chancellor may need to look to fill a black hole of around £20 billion to meet her fiscal rules.
Labour have said they will not increase taxes on working people. They also have said they won't increase income tax, national insurance or VAT.
When asked about 'fairness' in the tax system, Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: "That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn."
He added: "They can't get anything past their own back benches. The consequence of all of that is going to be tax rises for people who are working hard and on businesses.
"It's nothing to do with fairness, it's a symptom of Labour failure."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
34 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Labour chiefs in hypocrisy row after ordering NO buses from Alexander Dennis as firm faces closure
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SCOTTISH Labour-run Edinburgh Council failed to buy a single bus from closure-threatened Alexander Dennis for the last three years, we can reveal. The party were last night labelled hypocrites after using bus orders from Labour-run Manchester to attack the SNP's failures to support the business. Sign up for the Politics newsletter Sign up 4 The Alexander Dennis site at Camelon, near Falkirk Credit: PA 4 Anas Sarwar had criticised SNP inaction over the future of Alexander Dennis Credit: Getty However, it has emerged that after coming to power in the Capital, council bus firm Lothian Buses failed to make a single order from the company. Lothian Buses is the single largest taxpayer-owned bus operator in Scotland. Scottish Tory transport spokeswoman and Lothian MSP, Sue Webber, said the figures were a 'major source of embarrassment for Anas Sarwar'. She said: 'He has been at pains to demand more support for the under-threat workforce at Alexander Dennis but his own council in Edinburgh haven't lifted a finger for years. Find out what's really going on Register now for our free weekly politics newsletter for an insightful and irreverent look at the (sometimes excruciating) world of Scottish Politics. Every Thursday our hotshot politics team goes behind the headlines to bring you a rundown of key events - plus insights and gossip from the corridors of power, including a 'Plonker' and 'Star' of the Week. Sign up now and make sure you don't miss a beat. The politicians would hate that. SIGN UP FOR FREE NOW 'The Scottish Labour leader must urgently ask his councillors in Edinburgh why they have turned their backs on this firm, which now looks set to leave Scotland.' Figures from Lothian Buses, Scotland's largest council-run bus firm, show 180 buses were purchased from the company between 2018 and 2022. The SNP and Scottish Labour ran Edinburgh council between 2017 and 2022 in a power-sharing deal. Scottish Labour's shock win in Hamilton stuns establishment as SNP face 'false' campaign blast But at the council elections in 2022, ex-party chief Cammy Day seized total control of the city by cutting a deal with Scottish Lib Dem and Tory councillors to block the SNP and Scottish Greens from power. But Lothian said not a single order had been made to Alexander Dennis by the bus operator since Scottish Labour took over as a minority administration. Instead 43 new buses were ordered from other manufacturers in 2023. Alexander Dennis has said it needs around 70 orders this year and 300 next year to stay open in Scotland. 4 Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, had ordered 160 buses from Alexander Dennis Credit: PA 4 Scottish Tory transport spokeswoman Sue Webber said the news was "embarrassing" for Mr Sarwar Credit: Alamy A Scottish Government source slammed Labour for 'playing politics'. They said: 'While the Scottish Government explores all options to secure the future of Alexander Dennis in Scotland, the Labour Party have been focused on playing politics. 'This proves that Labour are not serious, they are more concerned with soundbites and social media videos than actually governing and Anas Sarwar is clearly unfit to be First Minister.' Last week 80 jobs were axed at Fife-based Greenfold Systems which builds parts for Alexander Dennis in the latest blow to Scotland's home-grown bus manufacturing. Figures obtained by The Scottish Sun show major bus firms in Scotland have bought hundreds of buses from Alexander Dennis in the last five years. Stagecoach said they had ordered more than 1,000 buses from the company in the last five years, with a further 669 going to other manufacturers. First Bus said it had 200 electric buses from the firm in operation across Scotland, with 84 from other companies. McGills refused to give figures but said it had reduced its orders from Alexander Dennis due to issues with their electric models. They said before the pandemic when all of their buses ran on diesel, Alexander Dennis vehicles made up over 50 per cent of their fleet. A Lothian Bus spokesman said: 'All vehicle procurement decisions are based on an extensive range of factors including product compatibility with Lothian's evolving fleet strategy.' A Scottish Labour spokeswoman added: 'Scottish Labour is clear that we want to make sure that government contracts support Scottish industry and Scottish jobs. 'While the SNP sends contracts to China and Turkey, Anas Sarwar is convening a summit with Mayors from across the UK to discuss how we boost domestic bus manufacturing businesses, including at iconic firms like Alexander Dennis.' An Edinburgh Council spokesman said: "The Council has no involvement in procurement of vehicles for Lothian Buses. This is decided by the Lothian Buses Board."
Telegraph
35 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Farage urges Reform councils to ditch ‘virtue-signalling' net zero targets
Nigel Farage has pressured Reform-led councils to scrap 'virtue-signalling' climate emergency targets amid concerns they are 'massive diversions of time'. Eight in 10 local authorities across Britain declared so-called climate emergencies between May 2019 and 2023, with many racing to beat each other into announcing their green-focused pledges. The floodgates were opened six years ago after the House of Commons agreed on a motion tabled by Jeremy Corbyn for Parliament to declare an emergency. Local authorities vowed to follow suit by devoting millions of pounds to decarbonise offices, waste collection trucks and all council-run services. Rather than opt for a 2050 deadline – as agreed by Parliament – the majority of councils pledged a more ambitious 2030 target. Mr Farage, whose party gained control of 10 county councils two months ago, told The Telegraph the net zero pledges need to be ditched. He said: 'They need to be scrapped. It's not the job of county councils to deal with global issues, and it wouldn't make any difference at all if they were scrapped. 'It costs money and they are a massive diversion of time. It's virtue-signalling.' Mr Farage's comments come after he said in May that staff working on climate change initiatives should be 'seeking alternative careers'. Of the 10 councils Reform gained control, the party inherited seven climate emergency policies. Kent County Council last week became the first Reform-led authority to announce cost-savings plans of £40m by cutting net zero spending. It declared a climate emergency in 2019. In a move described as 'reckless' by critics, Lincolnshire County Council scrapped its flood management scrutiny committee in May, while Derbyshire County Council axed its climate change committee and cancelled all climate-related meetings. 'We have no idea how much it all costs' Since committing to their climate emergencies, various councils across the UK have been accused of ploughing millions into eco targets at the expense of cutting key services. For example, cash-strapped Lambeth council – which has dimmed streetlights to save money – spent £25m on climate initiatives such as 'rain gardens' and low-traffic neighbourhoods between 2019 and 2024. An investigation by The Times last year found the Labour-run south London authority paid more than 40 staff members at least £100,000 a year, including a 'director of climate and inclusive growth' on £160,000. Pembrokeshire County Council, which vowed in 2019 to become net zero by 2030, is poised to launch a review into its climate emergency after councillors raised concerns over its cost and deliverability. Cllr Mike Stoddart, who previously branded the emergency 'virtue signalling on stilts', successfully tabled a motion last month to start a review. He said: 'We have no idea how much it all costs and there has been no accountability for years. The UK is responsible for just under 1pc of global CO2 emissions, and Pembrokeshire's population of 120,000 is roughly one five hundredth of that of the UK. 'If the council ceased to exist, it would make no difference whatsoever to the Earth's climate.' A meeting of Pembrokeshire's full council – which is coalition-led – will decide whether to pursue a review at a meeting this month. Council papers show that it does 'not currently have an assessment' of the costs of its climate emergency, despite previously pledging to publish bi-annual reviews. Elsewhere, in Merseyside, Sefton Council, which has reduced emissions by 43pc since 2019, said it is 'clear that a substantial amount of investment will be required' to reach net zero by 2030. External funding is needed, but a progress report goes on to state that the council 'must carefully evaluate its position in the coming years'. Councils taking 'minimum action' Having announced climate emergencies, some councils have taken the most 'minimum action possible', according to watchdog group, Climate Emergency UK. Damning findings show that only a quarter of councils have turned at least 10pc of their vehicle fleet electric since pledging to decarbonise. Isaac Beevor, of Climate Emergency UK, said some councils are 'driving forward local climate action', yet others are falling short. He said: 'There are councils which continue to lag behind, taking the minimum action possible.' Having ranked every local authority's performance, the watchdog concluded progress across the UK is 'slow', with hundreds of councils not on track to meet their own self-declared net zero targets. Climate Emergency UK scored councils across seven categories of performance, ranking them on a score from 0 to 100. Just 62 of the 391 councils assessed scored higher than half marks. Rutland came bottom of the pile for county councils, while Castle Point (Essex) ranked last for district authorities. At the other end of the scale, Islington council topped the overall chart. Mr Beevor said: 'We are calling for climate action to be a fully funded legal duty for all UK councils, as we need all councils to be creating the zero-emission communities we need to thrive.' Two-thirds of councils were not confident of meeting their targets, according to a survey published by the Local Government Association (LGA) last year. Adam Hug, a spokesman for the LGA, said: 'The Government will not meet its net zero goals without empowering councils to deliver local climate action in every village, town and city. 'With the right support, local areas could cut carbon quicker and for less money, while boosting the local economy and ensuring local people benefit.'
Daily Mail
35 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Claire's Accessories in 'last ditch' rescue plan ahead of looming £355m debt repayment
Claire's Accessories has reportedly brought in advisers to draw up a last-ditch rescue plans ahead of a debt repayment. The high street retailer, which has 300 shops in Britain, has hired restructuring specialists Interpath to search for investors for all or part of its UK operations, according to The Telegraph. The last-ditch plan comes ahead of a looming debt repayment on a $480million (£355million) loan which has to be repaid by December 2026. In a bid to reclaim some costs, there are concerns a restructuring could lead to closures among its 2,300 stores across the world, and pull out of some countries completely. At the same time, Claire's Accessories UK arm has racked up losses of £25million over the last three years. In the year to March 2024, it fell £4.7million into the red, a slight fall from £5million in the previous period, while turnover dipped to £137million. It has also struggled with increased US import costs as President Trump hiked tariffs on goods from China, where the majority of the items it sells come from, and competition from online retailers like Amazon. It is the latest setback for Claire's Accessories after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US to restructure its debts. In 2018, Elliot Management and Monarch Alternative Capital took control of its stores as former creditors. And it is reported that it is now working with advisers at Houlihan Lokey and Alvarez and Marsal on a deal for its US operations to seek bankruptcy protection. Claire's Accessories joins other British high street staples that are struggling with ballooning costs. WH Smith agreed to sell its 480 stores to Hobbycraft owner Modella Capital and will rebrand to TGJones, while River Island recently announced 33 store closures blaming rising costs and customers shopping online.
