Senior Tory MPs renew calls to Boris Johnson for urgent tax cuts
Senior Conservatives from across the party have renewed calls for Boris Johnson to implement urgent tax cuts as Downing Street played down the prospects of a shift in policy.
A string of high-profile MPs, from Steve Baker on the party’s right wing to Damian Green on its left, have backed a fresh demand from the Adam Smith Institute for the government to reduce the tax burden.
“One of the best ways to help people in a cost of living crisis is to cut the taxes they pay, whether personal taxes or the tax on goods and services,” said Green, a former cabinet minister. “I urge this path on the chancellor of the exchequer.”
Another supporter is Penny Mordaunt, a trade minister widely tipped as a potential leadership candidate if a vacancy were to arise at No 10.
“To increase revenues and growth for the nation, cut taxes,” she said. “To improve options and opportunity for individuals, cut taxes. To balance the state and generate wealth funds for future generations, cut taxes.”
The prime minister is expected to give a joint speech with Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, in the coming days to set out their plans for boosting economic growth.
The address will be part of a flurry of activity which is also expected to include a speech on housing policy and the publication of a bill to unpick parts of the Northern Ireland protocol.
But it is unclear how many new policies will be involved. A No 10 source made clear that the economy speech would not include new personal tax cuts as demanded by many backbenchers, saying: “It will not be anything fiscal.
“It’s a very difficult balance because while everyone wants to cut taxes, we do also have to be fiscally responsible,” the source added.
In the aftermath of Monday’s confidence vote, Johnson told his
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