Jeremy Corbyn unveils £50bn tax grab in Labour manifesto – and that doesn’t even cover cost of renationalising water, energy and rail firms
Leader makes raft of new spending pledges – which he insists he will pay for by jumbo income tax and corporation tax hikes, as well as a new high pay levy
JEREMY Corbyn is unveiling a £50billion tax grab in his party’s manifesto – and that doesn’t even cover cost of renationalising water, energy and rail firms.
The Labour leader’s hard-left Socialist blueprint to run Britain collapsed within minutes of being released after a multi-billion pound black hole opened up in his sums.
Issuing the most expensive election document in the party’s 120-year history, he is making £48.6billion of new spending pledges – which he insists he will pay for by jumbo income tax and corporation tax hikes, as well as a new high pay levy.
But missing from the 50-page long plan – unveiled in Bradford this morning - are any costings for huge ticket items such as renationalising key industries or keeping the retirement age at 66.
The party insists that every promise in the manifesto is "fully costed", but party officials have refused to put aside money to pay for the policy, because they count it as an investment which will theoretically return a revenue stream in future.
Highlight pledges from document include:
- Return of 50p tax rate for those on £123,000 a year and threshold from 45p rate down to £80,000
- Corporation tax to rise from 21% to 26%, and levy on employers paying high wages
- National Transformation Fund to invest £250billion over 10 years to upgrade economy
- Bring private rail companies back into public ownership as their franchises expire
- Transition to publicly-owned, decentralised energy system
- Replacement of water system with regional, publicly-owned companies
- Reversal of Royal Mail privatisation "at the earliest opportunity”
- Scrap Conservatives' Brexit White Paper and instead focus on retaining Single Market and Customs Union membership
- No cap on immigration and describing targets as "bogus"
- National Education Service, scrap university tuition fees and reduce class sizes
- Extend the 30 hours of free childcare to all two-year-olds
If Labour did take power, they would have to shell out billions to take over privatised services - for example, Royal Mail alone is worth more than £4billion.
However, buying up large companies is a risky proposition because their value could easily fall if they are mismanaged by politicians and civil servants, leaving the public out of pocket.
But walking out to thunderous applause and accompanied by All Together Now by The Farm, he talked up the manifesto - which was initially leaked last week.
He began by praising former Labour leader Harold Wilson, who was Prime Minister in the 1970s and chancellor of Bradford University – where the launch was taking place.
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But despite holding up a copy of the manifesto, called For The Many Not The Few, to a rapturous reception from the crowd of supporters, he failed to hold up the second part of the document – which sets out how much the pledges would cost.
The pamphlet, Funding Britain’s Future, shows that a Labour government would raise £19.4billion through hikes in corporation tax, raising the headline rate to 21% from 2018/19, 24% the following year, and 26% in 2020/21.
Bringing back the 50p tax rate on earnings over £123,000 will raise £6.4billion, the manifesto claims, while the threshold at which the 45p additional income tax rate kicks in will be lowered from £150,000 to £80,000.
It also aims to raise £6.5billion by tackling tax avoidance and employers paying "exceptionally high rates" to staff, charging VAT on private school fees - as well as earning £3.7 billion from reversing tax giveaways on capital gains tax and inheritance tax.
Another unfunded commitment comes in the form of a £250billion pool to pay for infrastructure including transport, energy and telecoms.
The "National Transformation Fund" is designed to exploit low interest rates worldwide in order to spend money on long-term projects.
It would mean the state borrowing an extra £25billion a year over the next decade - but Labour is making no provision to raise the money elsewhere.
The party says the infrastructure spending – on projects such as high-speed railways, new power plants and superfast broadband - is a form of investment and does not need to be paid for through taxes.
In response the Conservatives said Mr Corbyn was a “shambles”, and the manifesto proves voters should back Theresa May instead.
The Chief Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke said: “Today confirms what we already knew: Jeremy Corbyn’s nonsensical ideas simply don’t add up.
“And every single working family in this country would pay for Corbyn’s chaos with higher taxes.
“It’s clear that proposal after proposal in this manifesto will mean more borrowing and debt: from promises on benefits, to promises on prison guards, to promises on nationalising the water network.”
He added: “It is simply not worth taking the risk of this shambles being in charge of our economy and our Brexit negotiations in 3 weeks’ time.
“For strong, stable leadership through Brexit and beyond there is only one choice at this election: Theresa May and her Conservative team.”
But Mr Corbyn said Labour is offering a "manifesto for all generations", adding: "We're providing hope and genuine opportunity for everybody.
"I say to our children, whatever the postcode you're born in, we will make sure you have the same chance as every other child."
And he said he was offering "hope" against the "fear" tactics of the Tories.
Mr Corbyn said people want a country "run for the many, not the few" as he said the last seven years have seen "our people live through the opposite".
He described it as a "Britain for the rich and the elite and the vested interests" while millions have struggled.
Mr Corbyn added: "Whatever your age or situation, people are under pressure, struggling to make ends meet. Our manifesto is for you."
And he said Labour's plans would involve the wealthy and big corporations paying "a little bit more" tax - and "stop dodging" it in the first place.
Mr Corbyn pledged a "radical and responsible" offer to voters, also telling the event: "We will change our country while managing within our means.
"And will lead us through Brexit while putting the preservation of jobs first."
The manifesto also sees the party refuse to put a target on the number of immigrants who will enter Britain after Brexit.
Labour promises "fair rules and reasonable management of migration", but without specifying how many foreigners should be allowed into the UK.
The document says: "In trade negotiations our priorities favour growth, jobs and prosperity. We make no apologies for putting these aims before bogus immigration targets.
"Freedom of movement will end when we leave the European Union. Britain’s immigration system will change, but Labour will not scapegoat migrants nor blame them for economic failures."
The Conservatives have vowed to reduce net immigration below 100,000 a year, helped by an end to free movement of EU citizens.
The party has vowed to reverse the Conservative education reforms, which aimed to return control to individual schools, teachers and parents.
Labour says it will create a "National Education Service" or NES, based on the NHS, increasing central Government control over every aspect of children's education.
The party promises to axe free schools, and to block the introduction of new grammar schools.
In a bid to grab the votes of students, Labour also pledges to abolish tuition fees - originally introduced by the party under Tony Blair.
Labour is also promising to keep the Human Rights Act and remain part of the European Convention of Human Rights, despite complaints the current human-rights regime is holding back the military and other organisations.
The party also says it would prioritise "public inquiries into historic injustices" such as Operation Orgreave and decades-old trade union controversies.
And in a bid to attract the support of football fans, Mr Corbyn - a passionate Arsenal supporter - says he will give them the chance to appoint two directors to the board of their favourite club.
He also vows to crack down on the resale of tickets for sports matches and other events by enforcing "anti-bot legislation".
Labour's promises on defence policy come almost at the very end of the 126-page manifesto, suggesting that the topic is not a priority for Mr Corbyn.
The party leader is in favour of abolishing Britain's Trident nuclear deterrent - but official Labour policy supports keeping the missile system.
The manifesto says: "Labour supports the renewal of the Trident nuclear deterrent. As a nuclear-armed power, our country has a responsibility to fulfil our obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty."
It also promises to continue spending at least 2 per cent of UK GDP on defence - despite Mr Corbyn's well-known anti-war views.
One radical idea floated in the manifesto's small print is the introduction of a new tax on the value of land, which would hit homeowners and businesses.
The tax would replace the current system of funding local government by council taxes and business rates.
A Labour Government would "initiate a review into reforming council tax and business rates and consider new options, such as a land value tax, to ensure local government has sustainable funding for the long term," the manifesto says.