Cautious tax talk
- 17 Aug 07, 02:12 PM
So the Conservatives ARE talking about tax - and very extensively too. John Redwood's on making the economy more competitive is detailed and wide ranging. And there's plenty in there for voters who feel as if they are being squeezed financially, as well as Conservative supporters who have been desperate to hear more on tax.
The idea that will probably find most resonance with middle income voters is the idea of scrapping inheritance tax. Given the astronomical rises in property prices in recent years, more people, even though it's still a small number, only 6% of us, pay the tax. Many think it's unfair, and it could be just the thing to pull in the floating voter. Suggestions of reducing corporation tax could be a magnet for people who run business.
But will the Conservative leadership take these proposals on board? They have welcomed them pretty warmly. George Osborne, the shadow chancellor, says he "likes the look" of the ideas. More to the point, he, one of David Cameron's closest political friends, appeared on the stage alongside Mr Redwood at the report's launch and was involved in putting the document together.
But remember David Cameron's caution so far in discussing tax. Despite all the talk in recent days, there is no sign of a shift away from the position he and Mr Osborne have taken since he took over the party's leadership - tax cuts should only take place if the economy is rock solid.
Of course, some Conservatives believe that tax cuts are what create a successful economy in the first place. But the work done in this report so far hasn't shifted the leadership's view that cutting taxes are something to aspire to in the long term. They remember what happened at the previous election when they made promises of specific tax cuts. But of course Labour will do their best to try and paint the Conservatives as pushing the same old tax cutting message.
The test will be whether Mr Cameron can communicate a subtler promise, and whether it finds favour with voters. He believes in lower taxes in the long term, but won't guarantee he'd introduce them in a hurry. Against our expectations, tax could now be a battleground in the next election, but despite it feeling familiar, it won't be precisely the same old fight.
