Keir Starmer grilled by Beth Rigby over Labour’s tax stance
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Under the Government’s proposals, the amount each individual spends on social care will be capped at £86,000, after which the state steps in. This is designed to prevent many pensioners having to sell their homes to afford support.
It is being funded by a 1.25 percent increase in national insurance, dubbed the “health and social care levy”.
Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner shared a Daily Telegraph piece about social care reforms “disproportionately” benefitting wealthy southerners, adding: “Obviously.”
The plans were approved by the House of Commons on Wednesday, with 319 MPs voting in favour and 248 against.
Despite reports of significant Conservative disquiet over the plans, only a handful of Tory MPs voted against them.
Leaked analysis suggests the plans will benefit already wealthy parts of England.
They indicate those living in the south-east stand, on average, to gain several hundred pounds over those in the north-east.
Wealthy homeowners stand to gain, as they will now be able to protect much of their estate from being used to fund social care.
A model based on a £50,000 social care cap, indicates those in the south-east will gain £400 on average above those in the north-east.
The Government decided on a higher social care cap, at £86,000, meaning these figures are only an approximation.
Mr Johnson’s plans sparked a furious reaction from Labour politicians and other critics online.
Jonathan Ashworth, Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary, tweeted: “Tory MPs this week imposed a punishing, unfair tax rise on working people.
“It won’t stop rising care costs and the small print means care homes could go bust.
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“And rather than providing more care for those who need it, it mainly benefits the wealthy.”
Naomi Smith, chief executive of Best for Britain, added: “No levelling up, just bigger gaps between the haves and the have nots. Red Wall Tories be warned.”
The Resolution Foundation warned the plans will “offer the most protection to those living in high wealth parts of England.”
The think tank added: “The cap will offer more support to families in the South, who will see a greater share of their assets protected if they hit the cap, but are also more likely to benefit from doing so given higher care costs.”
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Mr Johnson said his plan will end the “catastrophic costs” of social care for many Britons.
He added it will support “the NHS in the biggest catch-up programme in its history”.
Labour took its first polling lead since January after the Prime Minister’s plans were announced.
A YouGov survey put the Tories down five points on 33 percent, versus 35 percent for Labour.
Appearing on Sky News Oliver Dowden, the Culture Secretary, said: “The Government is taking the long term decisions in the national interest.
“At the next election, which is some time away, people will weigh that up.
“I hate putting up taxes, any Conservative hates putting up taxes, but the alternative would have been to mislead the public.”
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