“You cannot solve the deep problems caused by years of cuts & austerity with yet more cuts & austerity.”
By Matt Willgress, Labour Outlook
Yesterday, Richard Burgon MP presented in Parliament a 50,000-strong petition calling for Wealth Taxes in this week’s budget. The MP launched the petition three weeks ago as part of growing calls to increase taxes on the very wealthiest as an alternative to any further budget cuts.
Ahead of formally presenting the petition in Parliament on Monday evening, Richard Burgon MP said:
“The Tories have left behind a toxic mess of weak public finances, falling living standards and public services on their knees.
“But budget cuts and austerity measures that helped cause this situation cannot be part of the solution.
“Instead, the wealthiest in our society should be the ones to pay to fix the damage caused by the Tories and fund the investment our public services so desperately need.”
The petition calls for a 2% Wealth Tax on assets over £10 million, which would raise £24 billion annually. It also calls for the equalizing of Capital Gains Tax with Income Tax rates and an end to state subsidies to fossil fuel giants. Together these three measures would generate an additional £45 billion per year which the petition states would provide “vast resources to rebuild our public services, boost people’s incomes and invest in a higher-wage economy.”
A Labour Assembly Against Austerity spokersperson added, “The amazing level of support for this petition is yet another indicator of the growing anger there is at Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves pressing ahead with yet more austerity and cuts. It’s time to tax the rich and invest in our future.”
The petiton reads in full as follows:
“We believe that in the Budget on 30 October 2024, there should be no more cuts or austerity measures.
Instead, we believe that the very wealthiest in society should be the ones to pay to fix the damage caused by the last Conservative Government and to fund the investment our public services desperately need.
We call for a package of progressive taxes at the Budget, targeting the wealthy and those corporations that have done so well while millions of ordinary people have faced ever greater hardship including:
- A 2% Wealth Tax on assets over £10 million, which would raise up to £24 billion annually
- Equalizing Capital Gains Tax with Income Tax rates so that the wealthy few pay the same tax rates as ordinary workers rather than benefiting from lower tax rates. This would generate an additional £17 billion
- Ending state subsidies to fossil fuel giants and closing loopholes in the oil and gas windfall tax, raising another £4 billion.
These measures would generate an additional £45 billion per year, providing vast resources to rebuild our public services, boost people’s incomes and invest in a higher-wage economy.
We believe it is clear you cannot solve the deep problems caused by years of cuts and austerity with yet more cuts and austerity. Instead, we need to tax those whose wealth has skyrocketed while the vast majority of people have faced declining living standards, stagnating wages, and public services cut to the bone.”
- You can sign Richard Burgon MP’s petition calling for Wealth Taxes, not more cuts, in the Autumn Budget here.
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