Can the Conservatives afford not to increase taxes?
Ken Clarke has today opened a debate regarding taxation and the potential increase of both income tax and VAT in the short term. While there has been no official comment from the leader of the Conservative Party, David Cameron, there is no doubt that any party in power after the next general election will need to increase taxes across the board. We will also see a significant reduction in public sector investment, something which will place the next government at serious loggerheads with the unions.
It is known that the unions are already targeting the Conservative Party as they believe they will be in power come the next general election. A quick glimpse back to history shows that Margaret Thatcher took on and beat the unions back in the 80s although whether any such battle will occur in the years ahead remains to be seen. The unions were badly damaged by the Conservative Party back in the 80s but whether David Cameron has the nerve and the bottle to take such a hardline approach, should he gain office, is a matter for serious debate.
More and more differences are starting to emerge between the Conservative Party and the Labour Party and voters in the UK are starting to position themselves across the political spectrum.
Share this..
Related stories
CBI Scotland boss warns against Diageo vendetta
As we have covered over the last few weeks, the ongoing protest against the potential closure of a Diageo plant in Scotland has become all-encompassing and now involves key figures from the world of politics, business and the workforce of Diageo. However, Iain McMillan the director of CBI Scotland, believes that while protests at the potential loss of 700 jobs are justified, if the protests are ta...
Read MoreIs the tax credit system due for another revamp?
With news that fraud and errors in the UK tax credit system have risen to an unacceptable 8.6%, compared to the UK government's target of 5%, there are rumours of yet another revamp of the system. This is a system which has from day one had many problems from computer blips, to information blips to a total lack of control on monies which go out. There has always been a significant amount of fraud...
Read MoreHow are so many pension schemes in deficit?
While the British Telecom final salary pension scheme is currently attracting all of the headlines, there are many more major UK pension schemes in significant deficit. As we have covered on numerous occasions, the situation has arisen because of a number of factors which include:-
The assumption that the average pensioner will live longer than first thought
A redu...
Read my lips, No tax cuts
David Cameron today did what perhaps no other Tory has done over the last twenty years, warned the public that tax cuts were not a formality if he was to win the next general election. However, he did promise to make savings on public spending, restrain price rises in the cost of living and try to help the public where they were struggling.
While tax cuts would be an eventual forma...
Ofgem under pressure on energy prices
Energy regulator Ofgem is under severe pressure this evening with concerns that it has failed to protect consumers in the UK from ever-increasing gas and electricity prices. The recent cold snap in the UK, together with supply issues regarding the Norwegian pipeline, has seen gas prices rise significantly on the wholesale market of which will in due course filter through to the consumer market....
Read More