ALBAWABA – In a speech on Monday, United Kingdom (UK) Prime Minister Rishi Sunak hinted that it is time to cut UK business taxes to boost economic growth, news agencies reported.
He promised to reduce tax burdens “carefully and sustainably” and “over time” in his autumn statement but said his focus was on the “supply side” of the economy, i.e. businesses, according to the Guardian.
However, his statement on the five key economic priorities moving forward was overshadowed by questions on the scale and type of cuts the Chequers Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, may make in his autumn statement later on Wednesday.
Britain has been at a crossroads for a few years, between a “big government” of high spending and taxes, which Sunak said had been necessary in recent years, and changing course towards growing the economy through the “dynamism of the private sector”.
“We can now move on to the next phase of our economic plan and turn our attention to cutting taxes," he said.
British PM Rishi Sunak said it is time to focus on the supply side of the economy by cutting UK business taxes - Shutterstock
UK business tax levels, and tax levels in general in the UK, are at their highest since records began 70 years ago, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank, as reported by to BBC.
Sunak’s government’s five economic priorities are: Reducing debt, cutting tax and rewarding hard work, building domestic and sustainable energy, backing British business and delivering world-class education.
“Now that inflation is halved and our growth is stronger, meaning revenues are higher, we can begin the next phase,” Sunak said, in reference to cutting taxes.
With the Conservatives trailing in the polls, the government has been under pressure from many of its own MPs to cut taxes ahead of a general election, which is expected next year, according to BBC.
In a speech at a London college, Mr Sunak acknowledged "we can't do everything all at once". "It will take discipline and we need to prioritise," he said. "But over time, we can and we will cut taxes."
