Starmer’s tax raid on private schools ‘would cost more than it saves’

LABOUR would ‘damage’ the education system with its proposed tax raid on private schools – which would cost the taxpayer £1.6billion a year, a think-tank has warned.

Research from the Adam Smith Institute suggests the policy could force a quarter of pupils into the state sector, creating more costs than it saves.

Sir Keir Starmer’s party wants to introduce VAT on independent school fees, claiming it would generate £1.7billion to spend on state education.

Recent projections had suggested 3 to 7 per cent of children would move to the state sector if they could not afford raised fees.

But in its report, titled ShortTerm Thinking, the think-tank said the calculations failed to take into account higher inflation, fiscal drag and rising mortgages.

Modelling by the institute showed Labour’s policy would raise nothing if between 10 and 15 per cent of private school pupils migrated to the state sector. If this rose to 25 per cent, as some have predicted, the policy would have a net negative cost of £1.6billion a year.

Tory MP Andrew Lewer, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Independent Education, said: ‘ The findings represent yet another piece of research underlining Labour’s education tax to not only be unfair but damaging as well – to state schools... and to the economy as a whole.’

Fellow Tory MP Brendan ClarkeSmith added: ‘This could end up costing the taxpayer more and will also cause a crisis in state schools, putting unsustainable pressure on places.’

A Labour spokesman said: ‘Labour will invest in delivering a brilliant state education for all our children, funded by ending tax breaks for private schools. Independent schools do not have to pass this change on to parents.’