Starmer policies would 'strangle the economy and 'rig' democracy

CHANCELLOR Jeremy Hunt has warned Labour will strangle the economy, damage our democracy and delight the Kremlin if it wins power on July 4.

- David Williamson

He declared this is one of the “most important elections of our lifetime” as he claimed Sir Keir Starmer’s party “could be in power for a generation”.

He fears they will “rig” future elections by giving votes to 16-year-olds and then “succumb to their darker instincts and end up raising tax to record levels”.

And Mr Hunt said Brexit could become a “damp squib” if Sir Keir binds the UK to follow Brussels’ rules. He warned of nationwide dismay if Labour scraps the plan to fly illegal migrants to Rwanda.

He said: “The biggest, starkest difference between Labour and the Conservatives is that, having got the Rwanda scheme to the point where it’s ready to go, Labour would cancel it on Day One and they have not given a single answer as to what they would replaced it with.

“My worry is that people who are worried now about migration would be in despair if Labour won the election.”

If Mr Hunt makes it back into Government, a priority is ensuring the “personal tax-free allowance is always higher than the state pension” so that retirees who rely on it do not end up paying income tax. He warned that higher taxes would be a “hammer blow” for pensioners.

There are reports of calls within the Shadow Cabinet for increases in capital gains tax to fund public services. Mr Hunt said that increasing capital gains rates to income tax levels would be “devastating”.

The father-of-three is battling to hold on to his Surrey seat in an election in which the Tories are the underdogs. Rishi Sunak’s party could face colossal losses if swathes of Rightwing voters back Reform UK.

In a swipe at the party’s leader Nigel Farage, Mr Hunt said: “There’s a massive difference between what he might want and what Reform voters want because I have not met a single Reform voter who wants Labour to get a super-majority.