26 February 2024 , 00:01
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More than 100 Tory MPs have pleaded with Rishi Sunak to abandon massive tax cuts that will only benefit the rich.
The PM is also urged to go further on childcare and scrap stamp duty for people who are downsizing in a string of measures to prevent electoral wipeout. Mr Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt face demands from rival factions within their party ahead of the Spring Budget on March 6.
The centrist One Nation group has also called for first time buyers to be allowed to put up to 25% of their tax free pension savings into a deposit for a home. And the caucus, made up of 107 Tory MPs, also wants all income to be taxed at the same rate - regardless of whether it's earnings, benefits, or dividends
Damian Green, who chairs the group warned the Chancellor against "prioritising tax cuts that only benefit the most wealthy, such as the Inheritance Tax". The Government has been widely tipped to raise inheritance tax thresholds or even scrap it altogether.
Mr Green said that the Budget is a chance to "demonstrate to voters that we are on their side". The group called on Mr Hunt to build on free childcare measures announced in the Autumn.
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Matt Warham, the caucus' vice chairman said: "For too many, caring for children costs too much money, and comes with an even higher cost to their careers." He said it is "essential" for the Government to provide "dedicated and meaningful measures".
And he added: "If we fail to do so, we risk letting down millions of parents who deserve not to have to choose between their child and their career.”
The One Nation group also proposes new protections to ensure graduations aren't saddled with higher interest rates on loans that the average commercially available. And it says a new levy should be placed on foreign owners of vacant luxury flats which were bought for investment purposes.
The demands follow hot on the heels of calls by the hard-right New Conservatives group to cut the basic rate of income tax by 1p. It also wants Mr Hunt to raise the 40p tax threshold from £50,271 to £60,000, and scrap the High Income Child Benefit Charge (HICBC).