Budget 2024: Keir Starmer denies misleading voters over scale of tax rises

The Prime Minister was grilled implicit whether Labour had failed to spell retired the grade of their plans successful the manifesto, wherever the enactment promised not to rise taxes connected moving people

Keir Starmer has denied misleading voters implicit the standard of taxation rises expected to travel successful adjacent week’s Budget.

The Prime Minister was grilled implicit whether Labour had failed to spell retired the grade of their plans successful the manifesto, wherever the enactment promised not to rise taxes connected moving people.

It specifically ruled retired hikes to VAT, income taxation and nationalist security for “working people”.

But Rachel Reeves is believed to beryllium readying £40billion of taxation rises and spending cuts successful the Budget to hole the economical messiness near by the Tories and to debar caller austerity.

The Chancellor is poised to hike taxes connected businesses by summation nationalist security contributions for employers

Ms Reeves is besides said to beryllium considering extending the frost connected income taxation thresholds, which means Brits tin beryllium pushed into paying income taxation oregon higher taxation bands by inflation.

Asked if helium had misled voters by not informing them astir the billions successful taxation rises expected successful his government's archetypal fund connected Wednesday, the PM said: "No, we were precise wide astir the taxation rises that we would needfully person to marque immoderate the circumstances.

"We were truly wide successful the manifesto and successful the run that we wouldn't beryllium expanding taxes connected moving radical and spelt retired what we meant by that successful presumption of income tax, successful presumption of NICs (national security contributions) and successful presumption of VAT, and we mean to support the promises that we made successful our manifesto."

But contempt his caller warnings astir symptom successful Budget, Mr Starmer said determination was origin for optimism.

He said: “We are fixing the foundations, which is tough, but we're doing it for a purpose.

“And that is due to the fact that I judge precise powerfully that if we hole the foundations, instrumentality the pugnacious decisions, scrub it down, marque definite that our system is connected a precise unchangeable footing - which is what it volition bash - that is the champion level for rebuilding the country.”

The PM said voters would justice him connected whether they are amended disconnected nether Labour - and singled retired the NHS arsenic a cardinal priority.

He added: “It is besides astir fixing our nationalist services and gathering the Britain that radical are entitled to and deserve.”