There are Lies, Damned Lies….and Election Manifestos

Please first accept my apologies for butchering Disraeli’s old quote....but, needs must….

The reason for its appropriateness in 2026 conserns the vexed question of whether Labour breached their 2024 election manifesto as a result of Reeves’ 2025 budget measures (mercifully her last!).

The point at issue is whether Reeves’ application of a 2p surcharge above the rate for earned income to the rates for both Rental and Savings income actually constituted a manifesto breach.

What it essentially comes down to is the exact wording of the document in question.  The Labour Manifesto of June 2024 explicitly states on p19 of the document: “…we will ensure taxes on working people are kept as low as possible. Labour will not increase taxes on working people, which is why we will not increase National Insurance, the Basic, Higher, or additional rates of Income Tax, or VAT.”

The fact that the words ‘Income Tax’ were not qualified in any way permits the interpretation that it was intended to include all types of income. Income derived from both savings interest and property rentals fall within this class; this has been confirmed by experienced tax lawyers and has established legal precedent. The fact that the manifesto emphasises working people does not excuse or override this interpretation– it merely attempts to put the measure in context as being advantageous to workers.

Thus by any reasonable argument, which would likely be upheld in a court of law, Reeves did breach the manifesto, and Healey repeated the offence by adding an additional 2p tariff in his 2026 budget. Had the manifesto’s authors been more careful, and inserted the single word ‘earned’ in front of ‘income tax’, Reeves, and more recently Healey, would have been in the clear.

But you might reasonably question what all the fuss is about, given that we all know that election manifestos are simply electoral ‘shopping lists’ of measures the party in question are offering to us in attempt to get our votes. And you would, of course be right about this. 

But there is one important distinction in this case….

Labour set great store in 2024 by promising the electorate that they wouldn’t increase key tax rates. This was to counter the assumption most of us made at the time that any left leaning socialist government would do just that to fund their traditional tax and spend policies.

Starmer’s election victory, although due largely to the appalling performance of the Tories in their final 3 years in government under Truss and then Sunak, was also predicated on his key promise on taxes. This was thus a key promise to stick to for him, as a would be ‘guardian of financial probity’, and for any government regime of the same ilk that might replace him. Failure to do so, for whatever reason, would break a key promise to the electorate and thus risk trashing the Party’s credibility and trustworthiness.

And that is what we, as their electors, effectively have before us now…a double breach of promise, and Labour’s credibility rating through the floor.

Can we ever trust their promises again ?

I’ll leave the reader to make their own decision on that question…..and interpret their 2029 manifesto accordingly.

What I find even more surprising is the lack of political advantage taken by the opposition parties of this obvious faux pas on the government’s part. The current regime under Burnham have no real electoral mandate but have apparently adopted the idea that they can break Starmer’s promises with impunity. A political ‘open goal’, you might think for the opposition. But even Reform made little mention of the first breach and have been eerily silent on the second offence. Badenoch has likewise made little mention of it herself, and the Lib Dems as always are too busy contemplating their own navels to do anything useful.

The only reason I can think of for the lack of action by the opposition parties is their realisation of their own past sins…and those yet to come when it comes to keeping promises. Certainly not the attitude that those planning to use their votes to unseat the current regime want to see just now.

Let’s see whether Labour feel that having ‘got away’ with two breaches they can simply do as they like with the rest of it…for their remaining 2 years at least.

Hopefully, give ‘em enough metaphorical rope, and the inevitable will happen….

First published 1.11.26