Rishi Sunak hit by three new Tory demands as revolt on tax grows: 'We don't have conservatism!'
Rishi Sunak is facing pressure from his backbench MPs
PA
A group of Tory MPs have published their demands for lower taxes, as pressure from the backbenches continues to mount on Rishi Sunak.
The UK's high tax rate has dominated a lot of the conversation at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, with MPs frustrated at the Government's failure to slash the burden being placed on hard-working Britons.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has admitted that taxes are too high but told GB News yesterday that "there is no shortcut to tax cuts".
Heaping further pressure on Government to take action this morning, the New Conservatives — a group of 25 MPs from the 2017 and 2019 parliamentary intakes — have published their demands for lower taxes.
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Jeremy hunt speaks to GB News from the Conser
In a document titled "The New Conservatives' Tax Plan for families and small businesses", the group made a series of policy pledges that they want to see their party's leadership adopt.
They called for the Government to scrap the high income child benefit charge which is paid by parents who earn more than £50,00 a year, raise the VAT threshold to £250,000 for small businesses, and abolish tax reforms which force contracted workers to pay taxes as if they were employees.
In a warning to the Prime Minister and Chancellor, Tory backbencher Ranil Jayawardena said: "Today, we don't have conservatism in action, dare I say it, anywhere in the western world."
Speaking to Conservative members at the launch of the paper today he added: "We are effectively now living in a social democratic world that has been baked in for the last 25 years.
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Rishi Sunak is under pressure to cut taxes
PA"If Brexit was about anything in this country, I think it was about freedom. Freedom for families, freedom for businesses. Not about state control."
Meanwhile, Conservative MP Nick Fletcher said: "The Conservative approach to tax is that it must be fair, it must incentivise work and ambition, and must be constantly reviewed."
While Downing Street has refused to commit to tax cuts, Sunak this morning heap praise on small businesses on social media.
He said: "I’m unashamedly pro-business. So I enjoyed meeting small businesses at Conservative Party Conference 20203 today.
"I know the energy, effort and courage it takes to set up a business - nothing grows our economy quite like them.
"Conservatives will always be the Party of enterprise and small business."
Sunak has also faced pressure on taxes from other wings of the party.
Yesterday his predecessor, Liz Truss, addressed a "growth rally" where she made the case for bringing down the tax burden.
Meanwhile, dozens of Tory MPs signed a pledge ahead of the Conservative Party Conference vowing not to vote for any more tax rises.