Sir Keir Starmer has been slammed after being accused of U-turning on his pledge to scrap a pensions tax break for high earners.
The Prime Minister has promised while in Opposition to scrap the perk from which he personally benefitted.
An Act of Parliament titled The Pensions Increase (Pension Scheme for Keir Starmer QC) Regulations 2013 was passed when Starmer stood down as Director of Public Prosecutions which makes him exempt from paying tax on pensions savings over £1million.
The Labour leader said in March last year that he had not taken advantage of the tax break and “nor do I want to”.
However, Starmer has now been accused of U-turning on his plans to ditch the pension perk upon entering No10.
Ex-Tory Party chairman Richard Holden submitted a written question in Parliament asking for clarification on the issue.
Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of U-turning on his tax pledgePATabling his question on July 24, Holden wrote: “To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to repeal the Pensions Increase (Pension Scheme for Keir Starmer QC) Regulations 2013.”
In a response penned on July 26, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Darren Jones said: “The 2013 regulations were introduced to ensure the Director of Public Prosecutions’ pension scheme is uprated in line with other public service pension schemes.”
The Bristol North West MP added: “There are no plans to repeal the regulations.”
Starmer had said in Opposition that the tax break should only be available to NHS doctors in order to ensure they were not disincentivised from continuing to work.
Richard Holden wrote to the Treasury for answers on the Government’s plans
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“Whatever changes is needed within legislation or anything else, I am very happy want to be and will be in the same position as everybody else in this country,” he said at the time.
Reacting to the admission that there were no plans for a change in legislation, Holden said: “Sir Keir Starmer has (surprise, surprise) U-turned on his pledge to scrap his own special tax perk.”
The admission comes a Rachel Reeves is expected to unveil a black hole in the public finances of around £20billion, signalling that tax rises could be on the way.
The Chancellor will on Monday set out the results of the spending audit she ordered Treasury officials to produce.
Her update will reveal “the true scale of the damage the Conservatives have done to the public finances”, a Labour source said.
Any tax hikes to plug the shortfall in spending for essential public services are not expected before the autumn budget, the date of which Reeves is also set to announce on Monday.
Labour has ruled out lifting income tax, VAT, national insurance and corporation tax, but changes to capital gains or inheritance levies may be on the table.