Sports stars ridicule Corbyn’s attack on the wealthy
‘Deluded’ Labour leader criticised by two leading British golfers over plans to tax the highest earners
JEREMY CORBYN has been dismissed as “deluded” by British sports stars over his attack on billionaires, as Labour said it would press on with plans to increase taxes for the UK’S highest earners.
The Labour leader was yesterday accused of waging “class war”, after he claimed that there would be “no billionaires” in a “fair society”.
Ian Poulter, the golfer, claimed that Mr Corbyn was effectively stating that “no one is allowed to be successful”.
Confronting Mr Corbyn on Twitter, he added: “What a complete buffoon you really are. You can’t for one minute be serious. Deluded.”
His comments were echoed by Lee Westwood who highlighted a widespread backlash on social media to Mr Corbyn’s comments.
“If you’ve bothered to read the responses, I’d consider rethinking your policies,” he added. “[I] wonder how much tax you pay and how much you give to charity?”
The row came as Rebecca Long-bailey, the shadow business secretary, denied that Labour was engaged in the “politics of envy”, insisting that the party wanted to rebalance the economy.
Asked about comments made last week by Lloyd Russell-moyle, the Labour MP, who claimed that billionaires should not exist in the UK, Ms Long-bailey said he was highlighting “the staggering inequality that we see in Great Britain that makes many people angry”.
She told Sky News: “Ultimately, we’ve got a moral responsibility, all of us, to pay tax and to improve the communities in which we live, but we also can’t be within an economy that sees people sleeping on the streets and homeless.” It follows reports over the weekend that lawyers and accountants representing some of the UK’S richest families have been deluged with calls from clients asking for advice on moving their assets out of the UK.
Meanwhile, John Mcdonnell confirmed yesterday that Labour would press on with plans to lower the threshold for the 45p rate of tax for workers earning more than £80,000 a year.
Labour’s tax plans, unveiled in its 2017 manifesto, will also see the 50p top rate introduced for people earning over £123,000. “I’m trying to maintain that only the top 5 per cent will pay a bit more,” he told the BBC. “In terms of income tax, 95 per cent of the population will be protected.”
However, Mr Mcdonnell faced criticism from Jewish leaders after he claimed that Labour was doing “everything” to tackle anti-semitism.
It comes after Rabbi Jonathan Romain last week wrote to members of the Maidenhead synagogue, alleging that “a Corbyn-led government would pose a danger to Jewish life as we know it”.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said last night that Mr Mcdonnell’s comment “stretches credulity”.
Last night, Mr Corbyn rejected the idea that Jewish voters have anything to fear from a Labour government, after the Jewish Labour Movement said it would barely campaign for the party.
Speaking to The Guardian in Putney, south-west London, he also revealed how he told his fractious shadow cabinet “the debate is over” on Brexit and instructed frontbench colleagues to fall into line. “I just said, ‘look, this debate is now over. We’ve done it, the party has now made its decision, and that’s it’,” he said.
Separately, free TV licences for over75s will be saved if Labour wins the election, the party will announce today. Tom Watson, the deputy leader, will pledge to protect the benefit if Labour returns to power.