Hunt throws down gauntlet to Labour with N.I. pledge

‘Permanent’ cut of 2p unveiled in Budget aimed at giving his party a pre-election boost

- Nicholas Cecil

JEREMY HUNT sought to fire up the Tories for a general election by getting Britain’s economy growing, cutting National Insurance and boxing in Labour and the Liberal Democrats.

The Chancellor was due to stress that a further 2p cut to NI would be “permanent”, challenging Sir Keir Starmer to make a similar vow or risk leaving Labour open to claims that it would reverse it if his party wins power.

In a nakedly political Budget, he also took aim at the Lib Dems, trying to tie them in voters’ minds to Labour’s plans ahead of a string of fiercely fought “Blue Wall” election contests in London’s commuter belt, including his own Surrey seat, and the wider south.

Westminster had been gripped for days over whether Mr Hunt and Rishi Sunak could rake together enough funds to pay for a 2p cut in income tax, to the tune of some £14 billion, rather than eventually opting for the cheaper 2p cut to employee National Insurance, with an expected bill of around £10 billion.

Tory MPs were this morning, though, still hoping for the Chancellor to yank a true blue “rabbit out the hat” at the end of his speech.

Crucially, the Conservatives are banking on the economy pulling out of recession this year to inject a feel-good factor ahead of the election, widely expected to be in November.

But while the economy will grow, it appears unlikely to roar ahead, with official figures expected to show GDP will increase by around 0.8 per cent this year and then hover around two per cent for coming years.