Tonight the Liberal Democrats voted against the Government’s indefensible tax cuts for higher earners. Despite the best efforts of their whips, 20 Labour MPs put principle above party and voted with the us.
It is beyond belief that a party which claims to stand ‘for the many, not the few’, decided not to oppose the Government on this.
With public services desperate for investment, now is not the time to reduce taxes for high earners.
The Government’s policy will cost an estimated £1.3 billion pounds next year, money which could instead be used to reverse cuts to Universal Credit or end the benefits freeze a year early. This would have been a far more progressive way of using the money.
Government is about priorities. With public services desperate for investment, now is not the time to reduce taxes for high earners.
In Government Liberal Democrats focused tax cuts on lower earning families, and we support continued efforts to do so.
On Brexit, Universal Credit and now the Budget, the Liberal Democrats have shown that we are the real opposition.