United Kingdom: taxation as a battle horse to conquer the Conservative Party

Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, on May 27, 2022. The promises of tax cuts, put forward by his opponents in the race to succeed Boris Johnson, are an attempt to isolate him politically.

REUTERS - JOHN SIBLEY

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

Already eleven candidates to succeed Prime Minister Boris Johnson, after the announcement of his resignation as head of the Conservative Party on July 7.

Among these candidates, the head of diplomacy Liz Truss, who announced her candidacy on Sunday evening July 10.

The internal committee must present its calendar for the election this Monday evening.

The succession campaign will be played on personalities, but the political subject which will dominate the battle is the tax proposals. 

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With our correspondent in London, 

Emeline Vin

Freeze of the corporate tax increase for Grant Schapps, reduction to 15% for Jeremy Hunt, lower taxation for Nadhim Zahawi… All the programs have not yet been published, but the candidates are already listing their proposals to reduce the "tax burden".

A sea serpent among the Conservatives, who insist on presenting themselves as the party of low taxation and who, after 12 years in power, must assume the highest level of taxes since the 1940s. 

Promising to lower taxes also means providing an angle of attack against

Rishi Sunak

, one of the favorites in the ballot.

Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2020 to last week, he presided over unprecedented public spending, among other things to fund pandemic aid.

His recent resignation is also partly due to his economic differences with Boris Johnson.

He does not promise a significant drop in contributions, due to the crisis in purchasing power and the price of energy, and invites voters not to believe in the "fairy tales" of his opponents. 

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To listen:

United Kingdom: succession of Boris Johnson, "

eight candidates, but four favorites who can emerge

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  • UK

  • Economy

  • Boris Johnson