Tackling the cost of living crisis
The Economy
Liberal Democrats believe in enabling people and allowing businesses to thrive by encouraging investment, boosting productivity and taxing fairly. We believe that strong public services are vital for the wellbeing of individuals and society as a whole. Fair and progressive taxation is vital to sustain the services that support our economy and society.
The Conservatives have badly mismanaged the economy and recklessly damaged the public finances, failing to deliver strong economic growth after the Covid pandemic and adding billions to the cost of servicing our debt through their shambolic mini-budget. And they have taken people for granted, failing to deliver the investment needed to bring prosperity to all nations and regions of the UK. They responded too slowly to the cost-of-living crisis and their promises to “level up” have proved hollow.
We will build a strong, fair economy that benefits everyone in the UK, through wise investment, fair taxes and responsible management of the public finances. In particular, we will:
- Invest in infrastructure, innovation and skills to create good jobs and prosperity in every region and nation of the UK, while tackling the climate emergency.
- Help people with the cost of living and their energy bills by implementing a proper, one-off windfall tax on the super-profits of oil and gas producers and traders.
- Make taxes fair, ensuring that tax burdens don’t fall disproportionately on low earners, reversing the Conservatives’ tax cuts for big banks, and abolishing the separate Capital Gains tax-free allowance, to tax income from wealth more similarly to income from work.
- Give taxpayers real value for money, by clamping down on tax avoidance and evasion, narrowing the tax gap, and giving HMRC more resources to properly tackle tax fraud, which has cost the taxpayer billions under the Conservatives.
- Safeguard the UK’s economic prosperity while making the investments our country needs. We will make sure that day-to-day spending does not exceed the amount of money raised in taxes over the medium term, with additional flexibility during periods of economic crisis.
- Uphold fiscal responsibility by ensuring that all fiscal events are accompanied by forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility.