Budget 2008: Darling: I will not reverse abandoning of 10p income tax band
Alistair Darling has dismissed calls to reverse the controversial decision to abandon the 10p income tax band.
Some 70 Labour MPs and at least six ministerial aides are believed to be unhappy at the move to abolish the 10p tax rate, claiming it will hit Britain’s poorest hard.
But speaking on BBC1’s Andrew Marr show, the chancellor said he is not in a position to undo the decisions put in places by the Budget.
In-fighting among the Labour party looks to have affected the government’s standing among the electorate, with a new poll giving David Cameron’s Conservative party a ten-point lead.
And after foreign secretary David Miliband called on Labour MPs to rally around the prime minister before the party’s election hopes are jeopardised, Mr Darling has moved to end the internal rebellion concerning the tax rate by stressing that he would look to increase help for Britain’s poorest people in future budgets.
“In future Budgets, maybe in future Pre-Budget Reports, I also want to do more because I attach considerable importance to making sure that we help people on lower incomes,” he said.
“What I cannot do is to rewind the Budget. The financial year has already begun.
“There are millions of people who are already paying tax at 20p rather than 22p.”
He added: “It simply isn’t possible as you go into a financial year to unravel the whole thing and attempt to rewrite it.”
Labour MP Frank Field is to propose an amendment to the Finance Bill which will recommend compensation for those affected by the decision to scrap the 10p income tax band, with MPs able to vote on his plan in the last week of the month.
Speaking to BBC News 24, Mr Field said: “The idea that somehow we’ll do something undefined in the future to protect the poorest people in work, just is not on for most Labour backbenchers.
“This is a core belief for us and my guess is once we’re back tomorrow morning in the Commons the government will get a real feel of just how serious our intent is not to vote against our core belief to protect the poorest.”
