Osborne probes Brown-Darling backdating divide
George Osborne suggested a divide between Gordon Brown and the Treasury on yesterday’s income tax compensation U-turn in the Commons this morning.
The shadow chancellor was flagging up an apparent inconsistency in the government’s position on compensation for those losing out as a result of the scrapped 10p starting rate.
On BBC2’s Newsnight programme last night chief secretary to the Treasury Yvette Cooper was unable to confirm whether all the compensatory measures would be backdated to the start of the current financial year.
Mr Osborne alleged to Alistair Darling this position clashed with that of leading Labour rebel Frank Field, who withdrew his challenging amendment on the issue and has claimed full backdating will occur.
“This incompetent government can’t even organise a humiliating U-turn without messing it up,” the shadow chancellor said, suggesting a meeting between Mr Brown and Mr Field had established an agreement which Mr Darling “was not part of”.
Mr Darling repeatedly cited his letter to Treasury committee chairman John McFall yesterday, in which he pledged the “average losses from the abolition of the 10p band” will be “offset” this year, as “government policy”.
He added: “I have a commitment to actually do something about this problem. It is abundantly clear. [the Conservatives] have absolutely no intention to do anything about this and that they regard it is as a political game.”
Although expressing confidence the backdating would take place, Mr Field warned on this morning’s Today programme that failure to send a clear message could see “about 400 MPs rushing” to put down fresh amendments to the finance bill.
“This package is now felt to be owned by the House of Commons and the House is aggrieved that we have got ourselves into a position where some of poorest in work appear to be punished by these tax changes; nobody wants that to happen,” he commented.
Mr Darling told the Commons the unspecified measures for the “disparate” low-income groups worse off because of the 10p rate abolition would require some investigation before proposals could be put forward.
“This is something that I want to look at and I will come back to the House,” he added.
