UK Politics

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailDavid Cameron has called for 500 aid trucks a day to prevent famine in Gaza as he downplayed a diplomatic rift with Germany. The foreign secretary emphasised the “incredible unity between allies” when asked about leaked calls between German military officials. Intercepted by Russia, these appeared to show officials suggesting British service personnel were on the ground in Ukraine.Lord Cameron told a press conference in Berlin: “I don’t want to play into the hands of some Russian narrative about divisions between allies. What I see … is incredible unity between allies, incredible unity in Nato.”He also reiterated his call for much more to be done to help get aid to Gaza as he warned of a looming humanitarian catastrophe. “If we want to avoid famine, disease and help people in Gaza we need 500 [aid] trucks a day,” he said. He added that the wanted to ‘turn a pause (in fighting) into a permanent sustainable ceasefire’.His visit comes as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz faces pressure from Western allies and others to supply Ukraine with long-range Taurus missiles.Lord Cameron said that peace would be achieved by “helping the Ukrainians deliver what they need on the battlefield”.He said: “It’s a sovereign decision for every country. But in terms of what Britain has done, I know that what we have given to the Ukrainians has helped them to resist this appalling invasion.”To all those in Germany and beyond and around the continent, around the world, who want to see an end to this conflict, who want to see a peaceful settlement, who want to see peace on our continent, I absolutely agree that you get peace through strength.”You get peace by demonstrating that Putin cannot win, you get peace by helping the Ukrainians deliver what they need on the battlefield.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster email Leading British economic think tanks warned Thursday that whoever wins the general election expected this year will face some very tough choices on tax and spending if they want to make sure the public finances don’t deteriorate further.After number-crunching Wednesday’s budget statement from Treasury chief Jeremy Hunt, which reduced a tax paid by employees on their earnings for a second time in four months, both the Institute for Fiscal Studies and the Resolution Foundation said the economic inheritance facing the next government will arguably be one of the bleakest any has faced since World War II.They said the combination of high interest payments on debt and muted economic growth mean that both the governing Conservative Party and the main opposition Labour Party will struggle to deliver on their ambitions. A general election must take place by Jan. 2025, but it could come as soon as May. With opinion polls showing that his Conservative Party, in power since 2010, is heading for one of its biggest ever defeats, the prevailing view is that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will opt to go to the country in the fall, potentially at the same time as the U.S. presidential election. On Thursday, following the budget statement, Labour leader Keir Starmer once again challenged Sunak to call an election for May, while the prime minister brushed aside any questions about its timing.“The task for whoever wins is huge,” said Torsten Bell, chief executive of the Resolution Foundation. “They will need to both wrestle with implausible spending cuts, and also restart sustained economic growth — the only route to end Britain’s stagnation.”Like others, the British economy has taken a battering over the past few years as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In combination, they have pushed the country’s debt level up to near 60-year highs above 90%. As a result, the government has been pushed into raising taxes over the past few years and despite Wednesday’s cut in national insurance, the overall tax burden is expected to rise to its highest level since the late 1940s. Unsurprisingly, living standards, on average, have fallen since the Conservatives won the last election in Dec. 2019.Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said the next parliament “could well prove to be the most difficult of any in 80 years” for anyone wanting to bring debt down as a proportion of national income — the lessons of the European debt crisis, particularly as it related to Greece, following the 2008 financial crisis, is a reminder of what can happen when debt rises too far. “Even stabilizing debt as a fraction of national income is likely to mean some eye-wateringly tough choices — and we are talking tens of billions of pounds worth of tough choices — on tax and spending,” he said.Neither the Conservative Party, nor the main opposition Labour Party, have laid out how they can meet their wider policy objectives given the fiscal constraints. It’s clear after Wednesday’s budget that the Conservatives will make tax cuts a central plank of their proposition to extend their time in power, while Labour will fight the election on the need to improve the public services.“Government and opposition are joining in a conspiracy of silence in not acknowledging the scale of the choices and trade-offs that will face us after the election,” said Johnson. “They, and we, could be in for a rude awakening when those choices become unavoidable.” More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailJeremy Hunt called the BBC “unworthy” during heated exchanges on the Budget during an interview on Radio 4’s Today programme.The chancellor criticised programme host Amol Rajan after he called Mr Hunt a “fiscal drag queen” and said his plans to boost NHS productivity were “Soviet.” Mr Rajan said Britain was “ravaged by economic shocks” and the economy was “at best drifting, at worst stagnant.”Addressing the chancellor on theToday programme, the BBC presenter said:“We’ve seen seven quarters of GDP per head that’s been revised downwards. We’re hooked on foreign labour. The birth rate is collapsing. Many public services are creaking. Councils are going bust. Those are facts.”The angry Mr Hunt replied that the remarks were “unworthy of the BBC… and unworthy of you Amol”Undeterred, an indignant Mr Rajan defended himself and the corporation saying: “It’s not about what I think – these are the facts.“It’s a bit rich for you to say ‘I’m not a guy who does gimmicks’. People want radical change and you are not delivering it.”Chancellor Jeremy Hunt delivered his spring budget yesterday Mr Hunt sternly replied: “I disagree. We are doing better than other economies in Europe. I do not share your pessimism.”When Mr Rajan added “I’m trying not to be cynical,” Hunt interjected: “I’m not letting you get away with that.”Earlier in the show, Mr Rajan rattled the chancellor by referring to him as a “fiscal drag queen”.He said: “They call you the British fiscal drag queen for good reason. Tax levels are the highest since 1948”.Mr Hunt replied: “You accuse me of being a drag queen. I haven’t been called that before.”After claiming the economy was “at best drifting, at worst stagnant,” Mr Rajan added: “We have had seven quarters of falling per head GDP, we’re hooked on foreign labour, the birth rate is collapsing, many public services are creaking, councils are going bust.”Mr Hunt then lost his temper with the presenter after Mr Rajan said he was “stating facts” as he pointed out that the economy had contracted and public services are strained.As the two spoke over one another, Mr Rajan interjected: “The BBC is an organisation with tens of thousands of people who do lots of different things.”Mr Hunt added: “I’m afraid I don’t share your pessimism.” More

Jeremy Hunt has claimed an autumn general election is the government’s “working assumption”.The chancellor dropped a hint about when the nation will next take to the polls during an appearance on Sky News on Thursday 7 March, the morning after delivering his Budget.“When it comes to the choices voters make in an election, it’s about trust,” Mr Hunt said.“Do they see a Conservative government taking responsible, difficult decisions for the long term? Whether [the prime minister] chooses to have the election early, or chooses – which is the working assumption – to do it in the autumn, a Budget has to be responsible.” More

Jeremy Hunt said he has not been called a “drag queen before” after being dubbed “the fiscal drag queen” due to frozen thresholds pulling people into higher tax rates.The chancellor was a guest on Radio 4’s Today programme on Thursday (7 March), when presenter Amol Rajan informed him he had been called “the fiscal drag queen”.“I want to make a start on bringing down taxes. I’ve never said for one moment that I can bring them right down all in one go,” he said.“I don’t think I’ve ever been called a drag queen before, by the way.” More

Jeremy Hunt clashed with BBC Breakfast presenter Charlie Stayt as the chancellor was forced to defend his spring Budget.The presenter quizzed the chancellor over his Budget on Thursday’s show (7 March) and asked: “Is it true that if you are earning £15,000, because of your decisions yesterday, you will be £400 a year worse off?“Hang on, you’re taking one figure in isolation,” Mr Hunt said. The chancellor then went on to explain how he had increased benefit payments, local housing allowance and extended household support to help people on a low income.The presenter said: “One thing you don’t seem to be able to do is say that is true.” More

Jeremy Hunt has claimed a £15,000 settlement paid by the taxpayer to an academic who was falsely accused of supporting Hamas by Michelle Donelan was not “approved” by him.The science secretary has come under fire after she was forced to retract comments she made about Professor Kate Sang last year.It cost taxpayers £15,000 to cover damages and the sum was paid “without admitting any liability”, according to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.“The chancellor only approves much larger sums of money,” Mr Hunt told BBC Breakfast on Thursday 7 March, when asked if he signed off the payment. More

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inboxGet our free View from Westminster emailThe big news, but not the big surprise, from Jeremy Hunt’s spring Budget was that millions of workers are set to benefit from an additional 2p cut in national insurance.The chancellor announced the measures in an attempt to ease the tax burden ahead of next year’s general election.He also confirmed a new levy on vaping, an abolition of the non-dom tax status and another extension of the fuel duty freeze – meaning motorists will continue to save on petrol prices.As we heard Mr Hunt deliver the final budget from Rishi Sunak’s current government, I’ve been answering questions from readers about the spring statement – from the intricacies of national insurance cuts to Tory poll numbers.Here are nine questions from Independent readers – and my answers from the “Ask Me Anything” event.Q: Can the Tories afford to win the General Election now they have set so many economic traps for Labour?Slightly Tipsy MaxA: Good question. Neither party can afford to win the election. Whoever is the next government will face tough decisions about the public finances. It would obviously be easier for Labour to deal with those choices, because public opinion would be more inclined to give a new government the benefit of the doubt – for a few months at least.Q: How does a cut in NI create more jobs as Hunt claims?JecerisA:At the most basic level of economic theory, if you reduce the price of something it increases demand. Cutting NI has the effect of reducing the price of labour and makes it slightly cheaper for employers to hire people. Hunt claimed the Office for Budget Responsibility modelling shows a job-creating effect, and I assume this is true.Q: Who is double checking all the good news? He does not mention the fact UK’s economy has been destroyed and many businesses have left and are still leaving, if not closing down. Listening to Hunt, the UK could not have been doing better ever. Reality is very different though! The UK is not supporting its businesses or population in any way.ResponsibleA: As with most chancellors in most Budget speeches, Jeremy Hunt was selective in the figures he quoted. This or that was the best in the G7, whereas a more balanced presentation would be that the UK’s economic record and outlook are not terrible but nothing special.I don’t think it is fair to say that the government is not supporting the population in any way, though. Many of Hunt’s fiscal problems have been made more challenging by the furlough scheme and business support during the pandemic, and the energy price subsidy since.Q: John, why can those who are of retirement age not pay national insurance? There is a lot of talk about generational unfairness but this would seem sensible, may even fund universal social care and an increased state pension. MrpipesfA: The split between income tax and national insurance is one of many illogical features of the British tax system. Jeremy Hunt seems to be pursuing one route to ending the unfairness, by gradually abolishing national insurance contributions. But we should point out that these cuts (2p in the £ in Jan, another 2p in Apr) are to employee contribution rates only – employers continue to pay a large, and largely invisible tax in employer contributions.In an ideal world, income tax and national insurance should be merged, which would mean older people on higher incomes would pay more. But no politician is willing to lose those votes.Q: Is it correct that a 2% cut in NI means someone on £25,000 gets a tax cut of £248, while someone on £50,000 gets three times as much, £748?Neil LamputtA: I think it is more than that. Today’s cut is worth £435 a year to someone on £25k a year, and £1,310 to someone on £50k. That is my objection to it, and the previous cut: they are worth more in cash terms to people on higher incomes. Norman Lamont’s election-winning Budget in 1992 shot Labour’s fox by cutting income tax for people on lower incomes, which would have been a better idea.Q: Could anything he said make any difference to Tory poll numbers?Mark BurnsA: I don’t think anything Hunt said will make a difference to Tory poll numbers, mainly because it was all already in the public domain, but that doesn’t mean that he *couldn’t* have said anything that would move the numbers.Q: How can the speaker get the government to announce stuff in parliament before briefing the papers? (And does it matter)Ali HughesA: In the old days there were weeks of “purdah” before a Budget, when the Treasury would go dark and journalists really were just speculating, mostly wrongly, about what might be announced.In Gordon Brown’s time in particular, the Treasury became a much more communications-conscious department, and would leak or formally announce measures in advance to try to create a wave of news stories to prepare the way for the one remaining theatrical surprise on the day. Now it is all pre-announced and there is no surprise on the day.I imagine Hunt wanted the 2p national insurance cut to be a surprise, but news seeped out because MPs were warned in advance that extra legislation would be needed (which it would be for NICs but not for income tax changes), and it is almost impossible to keep a government secret these days.The speaker can try to order the tide to retreat, but he will have no luck.Q: What are the risks with further tax cuts in the current UK fiscal and economic environment? old daneA: A very good question! At several moments in Hunt’s speech I thought it was “Trussonomics by stealth”. He and Rishi Sunak are treading a fine line between, on the one hand, reassuring the markets that they have a grip on the public finances, and on the other, having to do irresponsible things in a desperate attempt to win the election.The markets want to be fooled, and so accept unrealistic future public spending plans as long as the Office for Budget Responsibility continues to grumble rather than rebel.But as I say, really taxes should be going up, not down.Q: If the Tories believe that there is no hope at the next election are they mean enough to salt the earth in the next budget for the next government making it even harder to begin to clear up before the election after that? If so what could the Chancellor do?fistfulloffishesA: I’m not sure that Sunak and Hunt are deliberately “salting the earth”. That implies that they have given up and simply want to make life difficult for their opponents. But politicians always delude themselves that they can win – remember that Sunak, for example, thought his career was over when Liz Truss won the leadership election, only to find himself in No 10 at short notice.These questions and answers were part of an ‘Ask Me Anything’ hosted by John Rentoul at 3pm GMT on Wednesday 6 March. Some of the questions and answers have been edited for this article. You can read the full discussion in the comments section of the original article.John also sends a weekly Commons Confidential newsletter exclusive to Independent Premium subscribers, taking you behind the curtain of Westminster. If this sounds like something you would be interested in, head here to find out more. More