{"id":122321,"date":"2023-12-19T20:09:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T20:09:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/leviolonrouge.com\/?p=122321"},"modified":"2023-12-19T20:09:24","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T20:09:24","slug":"keir-starmer-will-hike-taxes-if-he-wins-power-wales-is-proof-tories-warn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/leviolonrouge.com\/politics\/keir-starmer-will-hike-taxes-if-he-wins-power-wales-is-proof-tories-warn\/","title":{"rendered":"Keir Starmer will hike taxes if he wins power – Wales is proof, Tories warn"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Sir Keir Starmer will follow the Welsh Government and hike taxes across the UK, a senior Treasury minister has declared.<\/p>\n

Laura Trott, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said the Labour leader will have to hit working families “to fund his \u00a328billion spending spree”.<\/p>\n

The stark warning comes after the Labour-run Welsh Government announced huge cuts to public services and removed rate relief for thousands of firms.<\/p>\n

Pubs, shops and restaurants will see their business rates go up in another blow to struggling families.<\/p>\n

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While health spending is increasing in Wales, every other department faces real terms cuts, with rural affairs worst hit.<\/p>\n

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Laura Trott MP said: \u201cLabour in Wales have today done what Labour always do in power \u2013 raised taxes.<\/p>\n

\u201cKeir Starmer called Wales his \u2018blueprint\u2019, and we can all see why – these sort of tax rises are exactly what he would have to do across the whole UK to fund his \u00a328 billion spending spree.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn contrast, the Conservative Government have taken the difficult decisions to halve inflation so personal and business taxes could be cut around the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Welsh Government blamed high inflation for having \u00a31.3bn less than when the budget was set in 2021.<\/p>\n

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Finance Minister Rebecca Evans said: “We have had to take some really difficult decisions to radically redesign our spending plans to focus funding on the services which matter most to the people of Wales”.<\/p>\n

But Andrew RT Davies, the leader of the Welsh Conservatives, criticised the Welsh government for blaming Westminster for its problems. He said: \u201cLabour ministers have run Wales for 24 years, failing to reform public services and deliver results for the people of Wales.\u201d He claimed \u201cpet projects\u201d such as the wide-ranging 20mph speed limit were leading to cuts in areas such as rural affairs.<\/p>\n

Business rate relief for pubs, shops and restaurants will be reduced from 75 per cent to 40 per cent.<\/p>\n

The Welsh government said the discount, which dates back to the pandemic, was “never intended to continue indefinitely”.<\/p>\n

It remains at 75 per cent in England, where business rates are set by the UK government.<\/p>\n

The Welsh Independent Restaurant Collective warned the move could be a “final nail in the coffin for many independent businesses”.<\/p>\n