No NI raids on self-employed

PLANS to raise National Insurance contributions for self-employed workers have been ditched, Theresa May’s deputy confirmed yesterday.

First Secretary of State Damian Green said there were no proposals to revisit Philip Hammond’s £2 billion raid on 2.5 million self-employed people, which was scrapped after he announced it in the March Budget. The Chancellor was accused of breaching the Tories’ 2015 manifesto pledge not to raise taxes.

However, this year’s manifesto left the door open for an NI increase and Mr Hammond had suggested the issue could be revisited.

But Mr Green said: ‘We won’t be revisiting [NI] ... the House of Commons has already spoken on that.’