A blunder from Conservative HQ shows the party is panicking over a new deal announced by Labour. The Labour Party has ruled out tax rises for the 95% of UK earners who earn less than £80,000 per year. The 95% will also benefit from investment in public services and infrastructure.
So Tory HQ Press Office immediately resorted to launching fake news:
McDonnell says tax hikes on 80k earners today. Will be 20k and 30k before you know it. Corbyn wants to raise basic rate of income tax to 25p
— CCHQ Press (@CCHQPress) May 7, 2017
The groundless smear suggests the Conservatives have nothing to offer in response. Theresa May has refused to rule out tax hikes on ordinary people.
On Twitter, people called out the fake news:
https://twitter.com/ftobloke/status/861211263287922693
The bottom line
On the Andrew Marr Show, Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell laid out the bottom line in front of millions:
Anyone earning below £80,000, we’ll be guaranteeing you will not have an increase in income tax or VAT, or national insurance contributions. And for those above £80,000, we’re asking them to pay a modest bit more to fund our public services.
From Labour, we have a guarantee that the party will not take more from the 95%. Meanwhile, under the Conservatives, Britain’s richest 1,000 families are well on their way to tripling their wealth since the financial crisis. Since 2009, the top 1,000 families have increased their fortune by over 155%.
McDonnell says the party will use the “modest” tax hikes from those who earn above £80,000 per year to fund our public services.
Investment-led growth
Public services such as the NHS, rail infrastructure and social housing are the backbone of the UK economy and facilitate economic growth.
Failing to properly invest in UK people and institutions raises national debt in the long-term. Indeed, for every £1 spent on flood defences, for example, the taxpayer saves £8 in reducing later economic damage. That’s why the Conservatives have proportionately piled on more public debt than every Labour government in history combined. Even the conservative International Monetary Fund (IMF) has admitted that austerity economics has brought dreadful results.
Tory taxes
Many people would consider lower taxes the key reason to vote Tory. But Andrew Neil put that myth to bed on the BBC. Grilling the Conservative Party Chairman, he said:
Except that you haven’t reduced the tax burden, have you? As a percentage of the GDP, which is the best way to measure the tax burden, it’s now going to reach its highest level since the mid 1980s, which I’d point out was when Conservatives were in power. The tax burden in this country, under your government, is rising.
Contrary to economic folklore, the Conservative government is on course to raise taxes to their highest level in 30 years. And back in 1987, Margaret Thatcher was in power.
So Labour has an offer. If you’re one of the 95% who earns less than £80,000, you don’t need to chip in any more than you already do. But the higher-earners disproportionately benefiting from a society that depends on public infrastructure such as roads, firefighters, police and the NHS, will contribute a “modest” amount more.
The Conservatives have no come back. That’s why they are already resorting to spreading fake news.
Get Involved!
– Register to vote in the 8 June general election. If you don’t have a national insurance number, a 5 minute phone call on 0300 200 3500 will get it sent to you in ten days.
– Discuss the key policy issues with family members, colleagues and neighbours. And organise! Join (and participate in the activities of) a union, an activist group, and/or a political party.
– Also read more Canary articles on the 2017 general election.
Featured image via 70023venus2009 and 10 Downing Street
