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What Mr Starmer said about Labor not promising not to raise national insurance for employers
Keir Starmer said this when asked by Henry Zeffman whether Labour’s manifesto rules out an increase in national insurance rates or if it just excludes an increase in employee contribution rates. This is what Mr.
Starmer replied:
We made it clear in our manifesto that we would not increase taxes on working people. We explicitly said it was income tax, it was NIC (National Insurance Contribution) etc. so we put that in the manifesto.
Asked again if he was referring to employee-only NICs, Starmer continued:
It was very clear from the manifesto that what we were saying was that we would not raise taxes for working people. It wasn’t just the manifesto. As we have repeatedly said during the election campaign, we intend to keep the promises we made in our manifesto.
Therefore, I do not intend to reveal the details of the budget. You know that’s not possible at this stage. What I would like to say is that we will continue to keep the promises we made in our manifesto.
Of course, this will be a tough budget, but the focus will be on rebuilding our country and ensuring the growth our economy needs.
Keir Starmer is interviewed by the BBC’s Henry Zeffman in Downing Street this morning. Photo: Peter Nichols/Getty Images
Updated to EDT 04.12
Q: You’re being interviewed on the street. Is it a recognition that we didn’t communicate well enough in the first 100 days?
Mr Starmer said he was on track to deliver the changes needed and the investment summit had brought in £63bn worth of investment.
And that’s the end of the interview. It didn’t reveal much, but at least it provided some fresh words (if not fresh insights) about the National Insurance debate.
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Mr Starmer insisted Labor would not break its manifesto promises and said the National Insurance pledge referred to taxes on workers.
Q: Did the manifesto exclude increases in national insurance rates, or was it just national insurance for employees?
Mr Starmer insists Labor was “very clear” in its manifesto that it would not increase taxes on working people. He said Labor would keep those promises.
However, he said he would not discuss the contents of the manifesto.
This echoes what Rachel Reeves said yesterday about the lack of employer national insurance coverage, although Reeves was more explicit.
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Q: Do you agree with the Health Secretary that weight loss drugs could play a major role in addressing unemployment?
Mr Starmer said he believed these drugs could make a difference.
Q: What can you tell your viewers about how their lives will be improved?
Mr Starmer said he wanted to ensure that investment benefited all parts of the country.
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Keir Starmer is currently being interviewed by the BBC’s chief political correspondent Henry Zeffman on BBC Breakfast.
Q: You’re talking about investing in social homes. But this country needs 1.5 million homes.
Starmer says yesterday’s investment summit was important. Investors now say they want to support the country. Young people know that owning their own home is the “base camp” for their life goals.
The government wants them to do this, he says.
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Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said he believed raising national insurance for employers would be a breach of Labour’s manifesto. He recently told Times Radio:
It seems to me that it is a clear violation of the manifesto commitments.
I re-read the manifesto and it clearly states that there will be no increase in national insurance premiums.
There are no provisions regarding national insurance for employees.
Politicians are often happy to ignore the IFS. But the country is seen as the closest thing it has to a neutral “umpire” on budget issues.
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Opening overview
good morning. Conventional wisdom (which often cites George Bush and his promise to “read lips and impose no new taxes”) says that it is fatal for politicians to break campaign promises. There is. In reality, this is not always the case. Prime Minister David Cameron never came close to meeting his 2010 pledge to reduce net immigration to below 100,000 people, but this did not prevent him from being re-elected in 2015 (although he did not get close to achieving his 2010 re-election bid in 2016). (which contributed to its defeat in the vote). There are many reasons why Boris Johnson was forced to resign, but raising National Insurance in breach of his 2019 manifesto pledge is not usually thought of as one of the mistakes that ended his career. .
Nevertheless, breaking a promise is a big risk, which is why Rachel Reeves’ very strong suggestion that she would raise employer national insurance in her budget has triggered an important debate. As Richard Partington and Kiran Stacey report, Labor has repeatedly debated taxes on working people, arguing that its pledge not to raise National Insurance only covered national insurance for employees. There is.
But the Conservatives insist people have clearly accepted the promise of universal National Insurance coverage. Laura Trott, the shadow chief secretary at the Treasury, made the statement last night after Mr Reeves gave an interview clarifying her interpretation of the Labor pledge. Mr Trott said:
The Prime Minister chose Labour’s first investment summit to create further uncertainty and confusion for businesses preparing for Labour’s employment tax.
No matter what they say, it is clear to everyone that raising national insurance for employers is a clear breach of Labour’s manifesto. Rachel Reeves herself has previously called this anti-business, and we agree. This is a labor tax that stifles investment, employment and growth, and which the OBR claims will drive down wages.
Keir Starmer will give an interview on BBC Breakfast from 8.30am, so we’ll hear his views then.
The agenda for the day is:
9.30am: Keir Starmer chairs the political cabinet meeting.
11.30am: Lobby briefing held in Downing Street.
11.30am: Health Secretary Wes Streeting takes questions in the House of Commons.
After 12.30pm: MPs debate the second reading of the House of Lords (Heritage Peers) Bill. The bill would strip remaining hereditary peerages of their right to sit in the House of Lords.
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Updated on 03.28 EDT
