Latest news with #SirKeir
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Starmer's Labour Party has found a new enemy: baby boomers like me
What has the Prime Minister got against us boomers? After all, having been born in 1961, he is one himself. Sir Keir is a decent man: in person he comes across as straightforward and likeable. Yet it is under his leadership that Labour's class envy has morphed into generational envy. And the main target is the baby-boomer generation, born between 1946 and 1964. The narrative, assiduously promoted by organisations such as the Resolution Foundation, is all too familiar. Baby boomers, the story goes, stole their children's (or grandchildren's) future. We benefited from various windfalls, notably cheap property, but have bequeathed our progeny only debts. Younger people – Generation X, millennials and Gen Z – have bought into this narrative. Many show their contempt for those now in their 60s or 70s with catchphrases like 'OK boomer.' Gone is the culture of respect for old age, such as one still encounters in the Far East, India or Africa. Sir Keir seems to have internalised this narrative. And he is determined to expiate his guilt by punishing the boomers with measures that disproportionately affect them. This is most obviously the case in fiscal policy. So far this year, my family and I have been hit hard by inheritance tax, stamp duty and capital gains tax – all of which were increased or extended in the last Budget. Of course, younger people pay taxes too, but any estate agent will tell you that there are few first time buyers in the market. Property taxes are overwhelmingly paid by older people – though it is HMRC rather than the young that benefits. Inheritance tax also mainly penalises boomers, who have to pay it up front, usually before they get the wherewithal to do so. Even pensions are now subject to this iniquitous levy, which Brits (unlike non-doms) cannot escape. Farmers are now facing horrible choices if they are to pass on their land and equipment to their children. Most of them are boomers. Another example is second home owners, whose council tax has been doubled. Too bad for boomers who worked and saved hard for their dream cottage in the country or by the sea – and for their families. Small landlords, who are typically boomers with a single property to let, have also been hard hit. I suspect few boomers recognise themselves in the current negative image of a selfish, entitled, domineering generation. Most of us do our best to share whatever good fortune we may have enjoyed. Where would charities, philanthropy and anything that depends on volunteers be without boomers? When we were young, nobody talked about 'the bank of Mum and Dad'. Yet now this wholesale transfer of wealth from boomers to younger generations has become a mainstay of the economy. It is increasingly common for boomers not only to provide deposits but to buy homes for their adult children. Those archetypal boomers Tony and Cherie Blair led the way on this. But Sir Keir is making it more difficult. We boomers actually feel quite vulnerable now, soon to be categorised as bed-blockers and burdens on a bankrupt nation. Many of us are spooked by the assisted dying Bill, for which the PM has provided parliamentary time and support. Will we soon reach the point where it isn't just our habits, traditions and attitudes, but our very lives that will become redundant? As for Sir Keir's latest wheeze of votes for 16- and 17-year-olds: what is it, if not another way of relieving his guilt-ridden conscience? Few sixth formers (an outdated boomer term, I know, but a useful one) even want the vote. It doesn't make sense to claim, as the Prime Minister does, that paying taxes should confer the right to vote. Otherwise, the same logic dictates that those who don't pay taxes should lose that right. And there is no certainty that the new teenage vote will go to Labour, rather than to the other five or more sizeable parties in Parliament, especially the extremes of Left or Right. That is, after all, what happened in Austria, the only other European country to enfranchise young adolescents: the unsavoury nationalists of the Freedom Party are now in charge. Sir Keir will gain little by giving votes to children too young to exercise any other civil rights. No, this perverse measure is just another way to expiate his guilt by poking the oldies in the eye. Perhaps an insecure leader, with little to show for his time in office so far, hopes to gratify his Cabinet and his Party, the great majority of whom belong to younger age groups, by pursuing this vendetta against his own generation. As boomers gradually retire, we will increasingly be seen as fair game. Next on the agenda: a wealth tax. Yet envy is never a motive that leads to political success. At 67, I am old enough to remember the Labour governments of the 1960s and 70s, which eagerly practised the politics of envy – and thereby blighted their legacy. Most of the grammar schools from which I, like Sir Keir, benefited were sacrificed on the altar of class resentment. (Tony Blair and Michael Gove later did their best to reinvent them with academies and free schools.) Generational envy is just as pernicious as class envy. Nobody chose to be a boomer. It makes no sense to confiscate the modest capital that each cohort has managed to accumulate as soon as they reach the threshold of old age. No boomer wants to become dependent on the public purse. We know better than the state how to provide both for posterity and for ourselves. Every error by a government creates an opportunity for the opposition. Kemi Badenoch (born 1980) is much younger than Sir Keir and she shows no trace of generational guilt or envy. Her driving force is gratitude for being British. I long for the Conservatives to show some understanding for beleaguered boomers, most of whom are only trying to do the right thing by their families and the country. If Mrs Badenoch can come up with policies that reunite the generations, she will gain our votes. And there are still a lot of us.
The Independent
07-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
The bottom line? Britain simply can't afford to impose a wealth tax
Sir Keir, what have you done? Having climbed down over welfare reform, the prime minister now faces a left-wing with the bit between its teeth. They are in the ascendant alright, and don't they know it. The latest to step up to the plate is Lord Kinnock. The former Labour leader says there are 'pathways' to raising taxes 'that, I think, people are willing to explore and actually would commend themselves to the great majority of the general public. 'They include, for instance, asset taxes in a period in which for the last 20-odd years in the United Kingdom, like quite a lot of other Western economies, earned incomes have stagnated in real terms while asset values have zoomed. They've just gone through the roof and they've been barely touched. 'Now, you wouldn't have to touch assets of under £6 million or £7 million, so people's houses would be secure, obviously. But even by going for an imposition of 2 per cent on asset values above £10 million, say, which is a very big fortune, the Government would be in a position to collect £10 billion or £11 billion a year.' Kinnock once told the party conference: 'I am telling you, no matter how entertaining, how fulfilling to short-term egos – you can't play politics with people's jobs and with people's services or with their homes.' Presumably he did not mean rich people who create those jobs. Because, make no mistake, he is playing politics with them, with their assets, with their success – and with the people who rely on the wealthy for their incomes, with an Exchequer that also depends on their taxes and their continued faith in Britain. Unfortunately, due to his status, Kinnock has a following. At least five trade unions have come forward to declare they will lean on Sir Keir Starmer to do what he suggests. Among them is Unison, once the employer of Angela Rayner, who was its most senior elected official in the North-West of England prior to becoming an MP. Christina McAnea, the Unison general secretary, said: 'A wealth tax would be a much fairer way of raising revenue to invest in public services and grow the economy.' Listening to and reading their outpourings you do have to wonder what planet they live on, which bit of a globally connected world, that is seeing countries (including those Western countries Kinnock refers to, which have seen asset values soar and incomes stagnate) falling over themselves to attract foreign investors they do not understand. Those nations know their money generates prosperity and jobs. Which is another way of saying economic growth. The evidence of rich folks voting with their feet and departing these shores is mounting by the day. Mostly they are non-doms, already a Labour target, but by no means all. One London restaurateur is nursing a 30 per cent drop in takings since Rachel Reeves delivered her first Budget. He says that is not the result of smaller plates and weight-conscious diners eating less thanks to Ozempic, but them having gone, leaving empty tables in their wake. Hers was the Budget that saw scrapping of non-doms' favourable tax breaks, VAT on private schools, air transport duty on private jets, inheritance tax for the most valuable farms and of course, an increase in employers' National Insurance contributions. There is a pattern here, to which Kinnock and his acolytes would now like to add a charge on assets over £10m. It might collect £10bn or so as he claims, but for how long? And what signal does it send to those who have earned their money and paid their dues – only for them to be taxed again? Kinnock fails to make the connection between the rich and philanthropy. Those charities that help the poor and disadvantaged, organisations that research cures for cancer and other conditions, and the arts and sport … – they would all suffer drops in their donations. It's also a London tax, which also adds to its appeal. Nothing beats clobbering the swanky capital inhabitants in their £10m-plus mansions – conveniently ignoring the fact that without many of them, the UK economy would be under water, that London is the country's investment hub. Fortunately, there are those in Labour who see sense. Liz Lloyd, a senior No 10 policy adviser, has reportedly questioned whether existing wealth taxes were harming her boss's mission of growing the economy. Hopefully, Starmer and Reeves will agree with her and not Kinnock and his ilk. For if they wish to give the lie of going 'faster and further' in kick-starting the economy, Kinnock's wealth tax would the best way of achieving it. The battle lines are being drawn. Starmer must resist. Britain's economic future depends on it.
The Independent
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Victims of July 7 attacks remembered 20 years on with service at St Paul's
The Prime Minister and Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh were among those who gathered to mark the 20th anniversary of the July 7 London bombings at St Paul's Cathedral. Four co-ordinated attacks on three Tube trains and a double-decker bus killed 52 people and left several hundred injured in the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil. Sir Keir and the royals were joined by Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan, the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, survivors, emergency responders and bereaved relatives at the commemorative ceremony. Earlier the Prime Minister and Sir Sadiq laid wreaths at the July 7 memorial in Hyde Park at 8.50am on Monday, to coincide with the time that the first bomb went off. They were joined by officials including Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley and Chief Constable of British Transport Police Lucy D'Orsi who also laid floral tributes. In a statement issued to mark the anniversary, Sir Keir said: 'Today the whole country will unite to remember the lives lost in the 7/7 attacks, and all those whose lives were changed forever. 'We honour the courage shown that day — the bravery of the emergency services, the strength of survivors and the unity of Londoners in the face of terror. 'Those who tried to divide us failed. We stood together then, and we stand together now — against hate and for the values that define us of freedom, democracy and the rule of law.' Mayor of London Sir Sadiq said Londoners 'will always choose hope over fear and unity over division'. 'We remember the 52 people whose lives were cruelly stolen on that dark day and our thoughts and prayers remain with all of their loved ones, as well as the more than 700 people who were injured by these cowardly acts of hatred. 'We also pay tribute to those who ran towards danger on that terrible day. 'From emergency service personnel, to transport workers and members of the public who showed incredible courage and compassion by putting their own safety at risk to help those in need, their bravery and selflessness will never be forgotten. 'Two decades on – as we unite for a day of commemoration – I have a clear message for those who seek to spread division and sow hatred – you will never win. 'London's determination to stand together is stronger than ever. We will always choose hope over fear and unity over division as we continue building a safer London for everyone.' In his message to mark the anniversary, the King said comfort can be taken from the 'spirit of unity' in London and the country more broadly, which has allowed the nation to heal. He said: 'Today, as we mark 20 years since the tragic events of 7th July 2005, my heartfelt thoughts and special prayers remain with all those whose lives were forever changed on that terrible summer's day.' 'We remember with profound sadness the 52 innocent people who were killed in senseless acts of evil – and the enduring grief of their loved ones. 'We recall, too, the hundreds more who carry physical and psychological scars, and pray that their suffering may ease as the years pass.' 'In doing so, we should also remember the countless stories of extraordinary courage and compassion that emerged from the darkness of that day. 'The selfless bravery of our emergency services, transport workers, and fellow citizens who rushed towards danger to help strangers reminds us of the very best of humanity in the face of the very worst.' The King also stressed the importance of communities coming together in times of adversity. He said: 'While the horrors will never be forgotten, we may take comfort from the way such events rally communities together in solidarity, solace and determination. 'It is this spirit of unity that has helped London, and our nation, to heal. 'As we remember those we lost, let us, therefore, use this 20th anniversary to reaffirm our commitment to building a society where people of all faiths and backgrounds can live together with mutual respect and understanding, always standing firm against those who would seek to divide us.'
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Victims of July 7 attacks remembered 20 years on with service at St Paul's
The Prime Minister and Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh were among those who gathered to mark the 20th anniversary of the July 7 London bombings at St Paul's Cathedral. Four co-ordinated attacks on three Tube trains and a double-decker bus killed 52 people and left several hundred injured in the worst single terrorist atrocity on British soil. Sir Keir and the royals were joined by Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan, the Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, survivors, emergency responders and bereaved relatives at the commemorative ceremony. Earlier the Prime Minister and Sir Sadiq laid wreaths at the July 7 memorial in Hyde Park at 8.50am on Monday, to coincide with the time that the first bomb went off. They were joined by officials including Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley and Chief Constable of British Transport Police Lucy D'Orsi who also laid floral tributes. In a statement issued to mark the anniversary, Sir Keir said: 'Today the whole country will unite to remember the lives lost in the 7/7 attacks, and all those whose lives were changed forever. 'We honour the courage shown that day — the bravery of the emergency services, the strength of survivors and the unity of Londoners in the face of terror. 'Those who tried to divide us failed. We stood together then, and we stand together now — against hate and for the values that define us of freedom, democracy and the rule of law.' Mayor of London Sir Sadiq said Londoners 'will always choose hope over fear and unity over division'. 'We remember the 52 people whose lives were cruelly stolen on that dark day and our thoughts and prayers remain with all of their loved ones, as well as the more than 700 people who were injured by these cowardly acts of hatred. 'We also pay tribute to those who ran towards danger on that terrible day. 'From emergency service personnel, to transport workers and members of the public who showed incredible courage and compassion by putting their own safety at risk to help those in need, their bravery and selflessness will never be forgotten. 'Two decades on – as we unite for a day of commemoration – I have a clear message for those who seek to spread division and sow hatred – you will never win. 'London's determination to stand together is stronger than ever. We will always choose hope over fear and unity over division as we continue building a safer London for everyone.' In his message to mark the anniversary, the King said comfort can be taken from the 'spirit of unity' in London and the country more broadly, which has allowed the nation to heal. He said: 'Today, as we mark 20 years since the tragic events of 7th July 2005, my heartfelt thoughts and special prayers remain with all those whose lives were forever changed on that terrible summer's day.' 'We remember with profound sadness the 52 innocent people who were killed in senseless acts of evil – and the enduring grief of their loved ones. 'We recall, too, the hundreds more who carry physical and psychological scars, and pray that their suffering may ease as the years pass.' 'In doing so, we should also remember the countless stories of extraordinary courage and compassion that emerged from the darkness of that day. 'The selfless bravery of our emergency services, transport workers, and fellow citizens who rushed towards danger to help strangers reminds us of the very best of humanity in the face of the very worst.' The King also stressed the importance of communities coming together in times of adversity. He said: 'While the horrors will never be forgotten, we may take comfort from the way such events rally communities together in solidarity, solace and determination. 'It is this spirit of unity that has helped London, and our nation, to heal. 'As we remember those we lost, let us, therefore, use this 20th anniversary to reaffirm our commitment to building a society where people of all faiths and backgrounds can live together with mutual respect and understanding, always standing firm against those who would seek to divide us.'
Sky News
02-07-2025
- Business
- Sky News
Emotional Reeves a painful watch - and a reminder of tough decisions ahead
It is hard to think of a PMQs like it - it was a painful watch. The prime minister battled on, his tone assured, even if his actual words were not always convincing. But it was the chancellor next to him that attracted the most attention. Rachel Reeves looked visibly upset. It is hard to know for sure right now what was going on behind the scenes, the reasons - predictable or otherwise - why she appeared to be emotional, but it was noticeable and it was difficult to watch. Her spokesperson says it was a personal matter that they will not be getting into. Even Kemi Badenoch, not usually the most nimble PMQs performer, singled her out. "She looks absolutely miserable," she said. Anyone wondering if Kemi Badenoch can kick a dog when it's down has their answer today. The Tory leader asked the PM if he could guarantee his chancellor's future: he could not. "She has delivered, and we are grateful for it," Sir Keir said, almost sounding like he was speaking in the past tense. It is important to say: Rachel Reeves's face during one PMQs session is not enough to tell us everything, or even anything, we need to know. But given the government has just faced its most bruising week yet, it was hard not to speculate. The prime minister's spokesperson has said since PMQs that the chancellor has not offered her resignation and is not going anywhere. But Rachel Reeves has surely seen an omen of the impossible decisions ahead. How will she plug the estimated £5.5bn hole left by the welfare climbdown in the nation's finances? Will she need to tweak her iron clad fiscal rules? Will she come back for more tax rises? What message does all of this send to the markets? If a picture tells us a thousand words, Rachel Reeves's face will surely be blazoned on the front pages tomorrow as a warning that no U-turn goes unpunished.
