Budget 2024: Minister refuses to rule out tax rises for people earning more than £100,000
A government minister has refused to rule out raising taxes for higher earners.
Stephen Kinnock dodged the question nine times when Sky News’ Kay Burley asked whether people who earn more than £100,000 a year are “working people”, under Labour’s definition.
Labour’s manifesto pledged not to raise national insurance, VAT or income tax for “working people”.
However, the party has not revealed its exact definition of “working people”, raising concern it is getting ready to hike up taxes for certain groups at the budget on 30 October, including those who earn more than £100,000.
At present, people who earn between £50,271 and £125,140 pay 40% tax on that income and those who earn more than that pay 45%. People who earn more than £100,000 also currently have smaller personal allowances.
Live politics updates: Starmer urges public to help ‘fix the NHS’
Health Secretary Wes Streeting, talking to Sky News’ Trevor Phillips on Sunday, warned high earners should not expect help at the budget, suggesting it would focus on “people who are on lower or middle incomes”.
Pressed on that today, health minister Mr Kinnock said he would not speculate and added: “The chancellor will set this out on 30 October.”
He insisted the government would “not be breaking any of those manifesto commitments”.
The definition of “working people”, he said, has “to be seen in the round and that’s what’s going to be put on the table on 30 October”.
He added Chancellor Rachel Reeves will make the definition of working people “absolutely clear” during her budget announcement.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
‘We’re not going to fix 14 years in one budget’
Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman, when asked if somebody earning six figures is a working person, also dodged the question and referred back to Mr Kinnock’s comments.
Ms Reeves has been saying for months the budget will be “tough” and it was recently revealed she is aiming to fill a £40bn blackhole – much larger than the £22bn Labour said the Tories left them with.
On Sunday, Mr Streeting refused to rule out freezing tax thresholds, which would see more people dragged into higher tax bands.
The row over Labour’s definition of “working people” has ramped up over the past few weeks as it emerged Ms Reeves is expected to raise national insurance for employers.
Labour claimed this would not be breaking their manifesto as they only promised to not raise taxes for working people.
During the election campaign in June, Sir Keir Starmer said “working people” are those who are working but do not have meaningful savings.
Ms Reeves said they are “people who go out to work”, leaving voters none the wiser.
Read more:
Could Reeves change Labour’s fiscal rules to raise money?
What could be in the budget?
Which tax rises could Labour introduce?
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
What will the budget include?
She is expected to increase capital gains tax, paid on the sale of shares and other assets, to 33% or above, but not as high as 39%.
The current rate for higher earners ranges from 20% to 28% depending on the type of asset.
An increase will be seen as a wealth tax as only about 350,000 people a year pay capital gains, but they contribute £15bn in tax receipts, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Ms Reeves is also expected to cut some reliefs in the inheritance tax system and could keep council tax increases at 5% a year.
Motoring organisations have raised concerns Labour will increase fuel duty for the first time in 14 years by not continuing the 5p cut.
UK health experts and officials have pushed back on Donald Trump’s claim that paracetamol is linked to autism, saying there is “no evidence” for it.
The US president said on Monday that there had been a “meteoric rise” in cases of autism and suggested that the use of Tylenol – an American-branded version of paracetamol – during pregnancy is a potential cause.
His claims have been widely corrected by officials, including Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who said that “I trust doctors over President Trump, frankly, on this”.
Read more: What is autism?
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Trump links autism with paracetamol
Speaking on ITV’s Lorraine, Mr Streeting said: “I’ve just got to be really clear about this: there is no evidence to link the use of paracetamol by pregnant women to autism in their children. None.”
The health secretary then referenced a major study in Sweden last year that involved 2.4 million children, adding it “did not uphold those claims”.
He added: “I would just say to people watching, don’t pay any attention whatsoever to what Donald Trump says about medicine.
“In fact, don’t take even take my word for it, as a politician – listen to British doctors, British scientists, the NHS.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Trump’s ‘not so careful’ autism claims
WHO says links ‘inconsistent’
Patient safety minister Dr Zubir Ahmed MP echoed this on social media, saying: “For the avoidance of any doubt, Paracetamol remains the safest painkiller to take during pregnancy.”
Dr Alison Cave, chief safety officer at the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, also said that “there is no evidence that taking paracetamol during pregnancy causes autism in children”.
She added that paracetamol “remains the recommended pain relief option for pregnant women when used as directed,” and that the MHRA’s advice “is based on rigorous assessment of the best available scientific evidence”.
The British officials were supported by the European Medicines Agency, which said there was no new evidence that would mean its recommendations for the use of paracetamol during pregnancy would change.
Tarik Jasarevic, a World Health Organisation spokesperson, added at a press briefing that the links between the use of the drug and autism “remains inconsistent”.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Paracetamol & autism: Evidence examined
Trump: Tylenol ‘not good’ for pregnant women
During a press conference with US health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, Mr Trump urged pregnant women to stop taking Tylenol.
After saying that Mr Kennedy Jr “wants to be very careful with what he says,” the US president added: “Taking Tylenol is not good. All right. I’ll say it. It’s not good.
“For this reason, they are strongly recommending that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy unless medically necessary. That’s, for instance, in cases of extremely high fever, that you feel you can’t tough it out. You can’t do it. I guess there’s that.”
Read more from Sky News:
Jimmy Kimmel Live to return
UK faces ‘crisis’ of child-on-child sex abuse
Reeves urged to raise major tax
Mr Trump then said key vaccinations for newborn babies should be delayed, that combined measles, mumps and rubella jabs should be given separately, and suggested that they are linked to autism.
“They pump so much stuff into those beautiful little babies, it’s a disgrace,” he added. “I don’t see it. I think it’s very bad.”
Mr Jasarevic pushed strongly back on that claim, saying: “We know that vaccines do not cause autism. Vaccines, as I
said, save countless lives.
“So this is something that science has proven, and these things should not be really questioned.”
The new Solana-based Evo stablecoin pegged to Kazakhstan’s national currency, the tenge, aims to bridge the crypto market with traditional finance.
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon says the Federal Reserve won’t cut rates until inflation cools, and adds he is “not particularly worried” about stablecoins.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment12 months agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024