UNDER FIRE
Keir Starmer refuses to rule out MORE tax hikes & backs Rachel Reeves to be Chancellor for ‘many years to come’
The PM was also accused of being 'distracted' by the row over former minister Tulip Siddiq
SIR Keir Starmer refused to rule out further tax rises THIS year as he came under fire over market chaos.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch demanded the PM guarantee no new taxes in 2025 after a turbulent week in the financial markets.
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But the PM dodged the question, insisting Labour had taken "the right and difficult decisions at the Budget".
And he backed his embattled Chancellor, telling MPs Rachel Reeves will be "in place for many, many years to come".
Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions, he said: “When it comes to tax she knows very well the limits of what I can say from this despatch box but we have an ironclad commitment to our fiscal rules. We can’t just tax our way out of the problems that they left us...”
Today's PMQs saw Sir Keir fighting on numerous fronts as it came just hours after Treasury Minister Tulip Siddiq was forced to quit in a corruption row linked to her family.
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Ms Badenoch accused the PM of being "distracted" by the crisis around Ms Siddiq "at a time of turmoil in the markets".
Ms Siddiq dramatically quit yesterday after the Sir Keir's ethics adviser found she had “inadvertently misled” the public about a flat gifted by an ally of her aunt, Bangladesh's ousted former prime minister.
Sir Laurie Magnus launched an eight-day investigation after Ms Siddiq referred herself to the standards watchdog after press reports questioning the origins of the property.
The PM had defended her just last week but accepted her resignation “with sadness”.
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Ethics boss Sir Laurie Magnus had written to Sir Keir saying he should “consider her ongoing responsibilities”.
He added it was regrettable Ms Siddiq could not provide conclusive documentation confirming regulations had been followed concerning two properties gifted to her and her sister by allies of her aunt.
Sir Laurie also said the Labour MP had inadvertently misled the public over the ownership of a flat in King’s Cross.
And he noted a 2013 Moscow visit for a signing ceremony for a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh — a deal likely to be at the centre of an investigation into large-scale embezzlement.
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