Tax rises ahead

Economists warn of tax rises across the board after election The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has warned that neither the Conservatives nor Labour have realistic spending plans as the general election approaches, with director Paul Johnson saying that both were being dishonest with voters. He claimed the Conservatives were continuing to "pretend that tax rises will never be needed to secure decent public services", stating: "It is highly likely that the Conservatives would end up spending more than their manifesto implies, and thus taxing or borrowing more.” As for Labour’s plans, the IFS said the party’s claim that only the top 5% of taxpayers would be affected by its tax rises was “false” and that “many millions” of ordinary working people would in fact be hit. Labour’s plan to force firms to put 10% of their shares into joint employee ownership funds would effectively hike corporation tax to 33%, the IFS added.