UK: An Emboldened Rishi Sunak Gets Ready to Fight His Own Party Over Taxes
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wants to use his deal with the European Union on Northern Ireland to cement a reputation for competence and delivery. Several members of his cabinet are instead hoping it will mark a return to traditional Tory tax cutting.
With less than two weeks to go before the March 15 budget, an improving picture in the public finances is encouraging senior ministers to step up pressure on Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt.
Two cabinet members in recent days have floated the idea that Hunt should either scrap or curtail a planned rise in corporation tax. A third, Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch, has privately indicated she wants to see the main rate cut, according to people briefed on those conversations, though she is also lobbying the chancellor on other mechanisms to reduce costs for businesses.
Ditching the plan to raise corporation tax from 19% to 25% would be a big ask for the 42-year-old prime minister. It was a totemic policy from his time as chancellor and his commitment to balancing the books was key to ending the market turbulence that brought down his predecessor Liz Truss last fall.
Yet he also knows that finding a way to start bringing down a record tax burden would help to win round his opponents on the right of the party and boost his chances of surviving a general election due in less than two years’ time.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-04/can-rishi-sunak-use-brexit-deal-budget-2023-to-beat-labour-at-general-election?utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&cmpid%3D=socialflow-twitter-bloomberguk&utm_content=business&cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business
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