Only ‘idiots’ think I can cut tax, says Sunak

RISHI SUNAK suggested only “idiots” failed to understand why he had not cut taxes to boost the economy.

The Prime Minister insisted that he wants to reduce taxation, but argued the Covid pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine meant he could not do so yet.

“You’re not idiots, you know what’s happened,” he told an audience in Morecambe, Lancashire, yesterday.

The promotional visit turned into a PR disaster for Mr Sunak after police announced he would be investigated after failing to wear a seatbelt in the back of a moving car on the journey.

Tory MPS and business leaders last night said tax cuts were needed to give the economy a boost. It emerged yesterday that thousands of council tax payers will pay average rates of more than £2,400 from April.

Rutland and Nottingham – already among England’s most expensive areas for council tax – plan to increase bills by 5 per cent, the maximum allowed. More than three quarters of districts are to charge average Band D bills of more than £2,000.

Sir Martin Sorrell, founder of WPP, the world’s largest advertising group, said the Government must lower taxes and cut red tape to drive long-term growth and “reach the sunny uplands”.

Asked at the World Economic Forum in Davos what he made of criticism of Mr Sunak’s policies by Sir James Dyson, the inventor and businessman, Sir Martin said: “He’s right. We need a longterm growth plan.” Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, also attacked the Tories’ “failure to grow the economy”.

Mr Sunak made the comments after Sir James criticised higher taxes on businesses, writing in The Daily Telegraph that the “short-sighted” and “stupid” approach by the Government was keeping Britain in a state of “Covid inertia”.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister said: “I’m a Conservative, I want to cut your taxes... I wish I could do that tomorrow quite frankly but the reason we can’t is because of all the reasons you know.

“You’re not idiots, you know what’s happened. We had a massive pandemic

for two years, we had to shut the country down, do a bunch of extraordinary things that didn’t come cheap. Now we’ve got this war going on which is having an enormous impact on inflation and interest rates.”

Mr Sunak said it “takes a bit of work” to get public finances “where it needs to be”. But he pledged to strengthen the economy, secure lower interest rates and get a “grip of ” soaring inflation.

“Trust me that’s what I’m going to do for you this year, that’s what we’re going to do while I’m Prime Minister and if we do those things we will be able to cut your taxes,” he added.

Last night John Longworth, the probrexit former director general of the British Chamber of Commerce, said Mr Suank’s use of the word idiot “shows a certain level of desperation on his part”.

“The only idiot in the room is Rishi Sunak,” he said. “It is quite ridiculous that he should take this line, as the UK had the lowest GDP to debt ratio in the G7 when he took office. We should cut tax and regulation, stimulate the economy and enterprise – and that will generate tax revenues.

“We have people at the top of government who do not believe in growth. They need to go and read Mrs Thatcher.”

This week, some Conservative MPS aligned with former prime minister Liz Truss’s tax-cutting agenda met for the first time as part of the “Conservative Growth Group”.

A senior Tory MP who backed Ms Truss said: “We do want tax cuts and I don’t think I’m an idiot, frankly. The only way to stimulate the economy is to cut taxes and that’s the Conservative way.”

John Redwood, a former Cabinet minister said: “A tax cut in the budget is essential to help people. We are overtaxing businesses and individuals.

“Tax cuts are eminently affordable: in fact it is the tax rises we can’t afford, stopping growth and higher pay.”

Asked whether Mr Sunak viewed people who wanted tax cuts as “idiots”, a Downing Street spokesman said: “He didn’t call anybody an idiot and he himself set out his ambitions to reduce the tax burden over time.

“He said that the worst thing he could do is make promises he can’t keep and saddle the country with more debt. And he set out once again that his overall ambition is to reduce tax. But that needs to be when we have economic stability and inflation’s come down.”

Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, would like to extend the 5p cut in fuel duty announced in March last year to run for another year if the economic outlook improves, reported.