Keir Starmer promises no capital gains tax on sales of homes as he dismisses tax hike claims
15 June 2024, 17:59
Sir Keir Starmer has said that Labour will not implement capital gains tax on the sale of homes if the party comes to power.
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Speaking to reporters on a visit to a hospital in Workshop, the Labour leader labelled claims his party would attempt to claw in money from the tax a "desperate" bid by the Tories.
He added that a tax on first houses was "never" a Labour policy and he could "absolutely" guarantee that it would not happen.
Mr Starmer said: “There was never a policy so it doesn’t need ruling out, but let’s rule it out in case anybody pretends that it was.”
It comes as Labour explicitly ruled out increasing a range of taxes, including income tax, VAT and national insurance, outside of those outline in its manifesto.
The Conservatives had previously accused Labour of planning several secret tax raids, including the possibility of making the sale of a primary residence liable for capital gains tax.
Speaking from "This was just a desperate story by the Tories in relation to capital gains tax on primary residences.”
Mr Starmer went on to “reject the idea that the only levers a prime minister has to pull are either the tax lever or the spend lever.”
He said: “There’s growth – this has been the missing part for the last 14 years, it has been the missing part of this general election campaign, frankly, a discussion about growth.
"Our manifesto is a manifesto for growth and a serious plan for growth.”
It comes as Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner told LBC that the threats of violence received by Labour General Election candidate Rosie Duffield are "appalling".
She is running for the Canterbury seat on July 4, and said the "extremely difficult decision" was made because the "actions of a few fixated individuals" have made her attendance "impossible".
