UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was just fact-checked by his own government
The UK Treasury has firmly denied Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's statement that unbiased officials have computed Labour Party's plan to raise taxes for everyone by £2,000.
During a recent televised debate before the upcoming July election, Sunak asserted his position. The debate involved a heated exchange between Sunak and Keir Starmer, the leader of the Labour party. They addressed a variety of topics, such as the cost-of-living, immigration, and the state of the National Health Service.
Sunak stated that Labour’s policies were evaluated by the Independent Treasury officials, and apparently, it would lead to extra taxes amounting to £2,000 for each family that is currently employed. The leader of the Conservative Party reiterated the same claim afterwards.
Before the debate, James Bowler, the highest-ranking government employee in charge of finance, stated that his team at the Treasury had no part in creating that figure.
Darren Jones, a high-ranking official in the Labour Party, recently shared a copy of a letter from Bowler dated June 3rd. In this letter, Bowler stated that government employees had no role in creating or presenting the Conservative Party's 'Labour's Tax Rises' document. Additionally, they had no involvement in calculating the total amount used in the document.
According to a report from the Conservative Party, Labour will need to come up with a total of £38.5 billion ($49.2 billion) if they want to follow through on all of their planned spending. This money would either have to be borrowed or collected via a tax increase that would amount to approximately £2,094 per household over the next four years.
According to the record, the majority of the expenses indicated in this document were analyzed by the Treasury department.
Bowler wrote a letter to the Labour party explaining that he had spoken with top Conservative Party officials and advisers about how they should not imply that the £38.5 billion amount was calculated using Treasury analysis.
He mentioned that expenses obtained from external sources or created by different establishments shouldn't be attributed to the Civil Service. He also informed government officials and advisors to adhere to this.
As per an opinion poll, Sunak emerged as the winner in the debate on Tuesday by a small margin. The poll conducted by YouGov, which surveyed 1,657 viewers, revealed that 51% of them believed that Sunak outperformed Starmer, while 49% favored Starmer.
Bowler's correspondence could damage Sunak's assertion to govern with honesty, which he promised to do when he assumed the position of prime minister in October 2022, as he navigates a crucial election.
Polls indicate that the Conservative party is likely to lose power and Labour party is set to become victorious in the upcoming UK election. This will be the first time since 2005 that the Labour party will win the election.
Labour issued a statement on Wednesday accusing Sunak of deceiving the British public. The party claimed that Sunak had told untruths eleven times regarding their taxation policies. According to the emailed campaign message, Labour has no intention of increasing taxation for individuals in employment. On the contrary, the party claims that the Tory's proposals will ultimately result in a £71 billion shortfall, which will unavoidably lead to heightened taxation and borrowing.
In the Tuesday debate, Starmer rejected the £2,000 ($2,560) amount as "ridiculous" and stated that it was founded on fabricated Labour proposals.
A representative from the Conservative Party declared that their report regarding the Labour Party's taxation strategies "employed unambiguous Labour policies, their own estimates or verified (Treasury) estimates that take the most conservative approach."
The spokesperson shared a statement with CNN and said that it is now up to the Labour Party to clarify which policies that were previously supported by them are no longer considered as their policies.
- Luke McGee provided information.
