Wes Streeting has dubbed Tory plans for tax cuts as “Liz Truss’ mini-Budget on steroids” as both parties prepare to launch their election manifestos.
The Conservatives will unveil their promises to voters - including a further 2p cut in National Insurance - later today.
Work and pensions secretary Mel Stride also dropped a huge hint this morning that it will include further tax cut pledges.
He told BBC Breakfast: “I can’t give you the full detail, I’m itching to, but they are exciting and very meaningful and important further tax cuts under this government, because we’ve got a clear plan for where we’re taking the economy.”
But speaking to the same programme, shadow health secretary Streeting said: “I’d urge people to look very carefully at this enormous and desperate attempt to buy people’s votes at this election with a whole raft of unfunded spending commitments and tax cuts.
“This is Liz Truss’ mini-Budget on steroids and we’ve seen the damage that unfunded, uncosted spending commitments make on people’s bills. That’s the big tax bombshell that’s waiting if the Conservatives get a fifth term.”
Streeting said Labour could not match the Tories’ pledge to cut another 2p off National Insurance “because the money simply isn’t there”.
He added: “I think that Rishi Sunak should level with people that the money simply isn’t there.
“I think he’s taking people for fools. They can see that National Insurance has been put up time and again by Conservative prime ministers and chancellors to pay the price of their economic recklessness and vandalism.
“If you look at the state of their campaign and the state of their spending commitments, the sheer desperation that’s coming out. Re-electing these chancers will be like giving the matches back to the arsonist and saying ‘go and finish the job’.”