Brown promises ‘stability and investment for the future’
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, has promised a New Labour economic strategy for a third term in Government, based on flexibility and opportunity for all.
Mr Brown insisted Labour tax rises had been balanced by cuts, but would not rule out future increases. He further criticised Conservative monetary policy as leading to a ‘boom and bust’ economy.
Mr Brown’s comments follow the launch of the 2005 budget on 16 March. The Prime Minister is this week expected to announce the date of the general election, widely expected to be held on 5 May.
Speaking on ITV’s ‘The Sunday Programme’, Mr Brown backed Mr Blair’s suggestion of last week that the Government’s manifesto would be ‘New Labour’.
Mr Brown defined the concept as “Labour values applied to new circumstances with new policies.”
As such, a third term in office, the Chancellor stated, would be: “A process of making the economy more flexible.”
He promised: “More flexible labour markets by equipping people for the future, our New Deal, which has an emphasis on obligations as well on opportunities.
“And of course the reforms right across the public sector, which include the reforms to our schools as well as to our hospitals and to the health service.”
The Chancellor refused to rule out tax rises should the Labour Party be re-elected, saying: “When the manifesto is published you will see what our promises are.”
However, he insisted Labour taxation plans balanced rises with cuts in other areas, aimed at a redistribution of income.
“When people look at our record, yes we raised national insurance to pay for the National Health Service, but we also cut the basic rate of income tax.
“We introduced a 10p lower rate of income tax. We introduced a lower rate for small businesses . We cut the mainstream corporation tax rate from 33 pence to 30 pence, and we cut capital gains tax”.
“In the Budget recently we raised the threshold for inheritance tax and stamp duty so that less people than otherwise would are paying”.
Mr Brown maintained: “We have tried to have tax reforms that encourage work, that reward effort, that help investment and savings in our economy and are fair.
“If you look at the balance, we have kept all the promises we have made in our manifestos”.
Speaking earlier on the same programme, Mr Brown promised a strong focus on education in Labour’s general election campaign and criticised Conservative spending plans as unrealistic.
