What is Labour NOT telling us about tax hikes? After a manifesto big on windy promises and small on detail, even Left-wing think-tank warns of ‘parliament of tax rises’

Britain was warned last night to brace for a ‘parliament of tax rises’ Work wins the election.

Sir Keir Starmer opened a £25 billion tax gap with the Conservatives yesterday when he published Labour’s manifesto for power.

But experts warned that Sir Keir would have to raise taxes even higher unless he is willing to impose major cuts or break the party’s own budget rules.

Labour’s blueprint confirms plans for £8.5 billion in tax rises, which would take Britain’s overall tax burden to the highest level in history. The plan is in stark contrast to the £17 billion in tax cuts offered by the government Rishi Sunak in his manifesto.

Sir Keir said he would make economic growth the party’s “core mission” as he tries to “turn the page” on 14 years of Conservative rule.

Keir Starmer smiles as he sits in the audience at the launch of the Labor Party’s 2024 general election manifesto in Manchester

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt called Labor manifesto a ‘tax trap’

Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies Paul Johnson said Labor had “literally no room” to increase spending without raising taxes further or breaking its own budget rules.

He described his plans as a “manifesto of hope” but warned there was no “magic wand” and said the problems a new Labor government would inherit would not “go away overnight”.

The Labor leader said the tax burden was too high and stressed he wants to make Labor the party of ‘wealth creation’.

Sir Keir rejected the idea of ​​a tax gap and said the Tories’ proposals were not credible.

But Chancellor Jeremy Hunt described Labour’s manifesto as a ‘tax trap’ – and analysis of Labour’s plans suggested a further £38.5 billion in tax would need to be collected over four years to pay for his plans , raising questions about where the money will come from. by.

The centre-left think tank Resolution Foundation, whose boss resigned this month to run as a Labor MP, said Sir Keir’s approach was “setting the stage for a parliament of tax rises and cuts for unprotected departments”.

“Even then, a modest dose of bad economic news could force a new round of tough fiscal choices,” the report warned.

Starmer described his plans as a “manifesto of hope” but warned there was no “magic wand” and said the problems a new Labor government would inherit would not “go away overnight”.

The tax row came as:

•  Sir Keir said ‘everything’ about Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal would be up for negotiation in talks with the EU;
•  Labor announced policy reviews in more than a dozen key areas, such as defence, the school curriculum and welfare reform, leaving voters in the dark about the party’s post-election plans;
•  Tory leader Richard Holden accused Sir Keir of ‘manipulating the electorate’ by pushing ahead with plans to lower the voting age to 16;
•  Labor announced that the ban on new petrol and diesel cars would be brought forward by five years to 2030;
•  The Prime Minister said parliamentary aide Craig Williams had made a ‘major error of judgement’ when he placed a £100 bet on the July election just days before it was announced;  Labor sources hinted that the party will repeal laws banning Channel migrants from seeking asylum in Britain;
•  For the first time, the Reform UK party led the Tories – 19 percent to 18 percent – ​​in a poll of voters;
•  Labor said it would remove hereditary peers from the House of Lords and introduce a retirement age of 80.

Rishi Sunak with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the G7 summit

The Institute for Fiscal Studies accused Labor of joining a ‘conspiracy of silence’ about the true state of the public finances and said Sir Keir was likely to face an unpalatable choice between tax rises or cuts if he takes office. power would come. Chief executive Paul Johnson said Labor had “literally no room” to increase spending without raising taxes further or breaking its own budget rules.

Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls said Labour’s “straitjacket” manifesto would make the first year in government “very difficult”.

At the G7 summit in Italy, Mr Sunak said: ‘There is now a very clear choice at the election: a Conservative government that will cut taxes for you at every stage of your life, and a potential Labor government that will reduce the tax burden will raise it to the highest level in the history of our country.’

Labour’s 135-page manifesto includes 33 photos of Sir Keir, but no new policy.