Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has told the BBC he has “no plans” to raise taxes further before the next election – but says he cannot rule them out in the event of “unforeseen” circumstances. .
The prime minister was speaking to BBC Breakfast shortly after making six pledges, including a promise to put more money in the pockets of working people.
Sir Kerr said he knew some decisions were “not always popular” but voters could judge them at the next general election on whether they felt their standard of living had improved.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch dismissed the prime minister’s new promises as a sign that Labor was “not ready for government”.
In addition to improving the quality of life, The second “milestone” was announced by Sir Kerr in a speech on Thursday. These include building 1.5 million new homes in England, reducing hospital backlogs and increasing the proportion of children who are “ready to learn” when they start school to 75%.
Labor has rejected suggestions that the new pledges have been reset after their first few months in government.
The Chancellor announced an increase in public spending of around £70b. His first budget in October, More than half of that will come from higher taxes, which will be borne by businesses.
Employers will see an increase in National Insurance contributions on their workers’ earnings, raising up to £25bn a year for the government. And there will also be an increase in capital gains tax on share sales and a freeze on inheritance tax thresholds.
Leading business groups said the budget was “difficult” for firms, and then Conservative Party leader Rishi Shank said: “You name it, they’ll tax it”.
Despite the tax hike, the Office for Budget Responsibility said the package of economic measures would ultimately “leave GDP broadly unchanged over five years”.
At the time, the chancellor told the BBC it was “not the kind of budget we would want to repeat”.
On the prospect of further tax rises, Sir Keir Starmer said: “I don’t want to suggest that we keep coming back for more because that’s not the plan.”
“What I can’t do, is that you have to say that there are no unforeseen circumstances in the future that will not lead to any kind of change.
“If you look at Covid and Ukraine, everybody knows there are things that we can’t see now but I can tell you that our intention was to do tough things in this budget, not keep coming back.”
Sir Keir’s interview with the BBC follows a keynote speech on Thursday, in which he Set six promises Which he says will give voters an opportunity to hold their government accountable.
Targets include the economy, housebuilding, the NHS, policing, pre-school education and green energy.
Labor plans to meet them by 2029, when the next election is likely to be held.
Chris Mason, the BBC’s political editor, said Sir Keir’s speech It felt like the release of an election manifesto..
He said the government appeared to be trying to regain control of the agenda, after a rocky start to life in power.
Asked why he felt his popularity had declined since the election, Sir Kerr said he had chosen to take “tough decisions” early in his premiership.
He said he knew the decisions would not always be popular but needed “to turn the country around”.
“I just don’t want to do what politicians have done in the past which is get into a hot bath of empty promises.
“I’m ready to roll up my sleeves and tell people it’s tough – we’re going to do it but you’re going to get better.”
“You’ll have better health services, you’ll have better housing, you’ll have better energy bills at the end of it and my decision will be absolutely right at the end of the parliamentary term, whether I I delivered on what I said I would deliver.”
Asked when people would feel better, Sir Kerr said it would be measured at the end of Parliament but he wanted people to “feel better immediately”.
He added Pay increases for the lowest paid This means that three million people were already better off as a result of the government’s actions.
Writing in The Times, the Prime Minister extended his pledge to build 1.5 million new homes in England, saying he was ready. To “The Beginning of the Golden Age of Architecture”.
“Britain is in the grip of the worst housing crisis in living memory,” writes Sir Kerr, blaming it on a planning system he says is “in urgent need of decisive reform”.
“For too long, the country has been held to ransom by blockaders and bureaucrats who have held back nation-building.”
Conservative leader Kimmy Bedenock after Sir Keir’s speech on Thursday He said: “The Prime Minister’s emergency reset confirms that Labor has been in opposition for 14 years and is still not ready to govern.
“Nothing concrete on immigration – because Labor has no plan to control the numbers.”
The prime minister has said he wants to reduce the level of migration but his six pledges did not include a measurable target.
Sir Kerr told BBC Breakfast that attempts to impose a “hard cap” on migration numbers had not worked in the past.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said his party would “hold this government’s feet to the fire on delivering on its promises, most notably on fixing and maintaining the NHS.”
“It was worrying to see no clear plan in these targets to ensure people could see a GP when they needed it.”