Wood's what if? Tackling taxation

Labour and the Conservatives have set out their agenda on taxation. Credit: PA Images

  • Sunday 14 May - 25 days until General Election

Well here we are at the end of another week and indeed the last week before we hear the parties' manifestos when they have to show us their sums and we can get a real sense what we are actually voting for. After making promises yesterday to pensioners, Labour is trying to woo those who want more spending on public services. So what if a party wants to raise taxes?

Well on the face of it no one wants to have to pay more in taxes, but that is not really what Labour is proposing today. As part of two financial measures the party wants to crack down on tax dodging to raise tens of billions of pounds. The other tax proposal is a 'Robin Hood Tax' which the Shadow Chancellor says will raise £4.7bn and would be a tax on financial transactions for banks and hedge funds. This is a policy that will be popular with high numbers of Labour members and is central to Jeremy Corbyn's promise to govern for the "many and not the few".

The Conservatives say the party has recovered an extra £140bn in tax that would have been avoided or evaded since 2010 and describe today's announcement as "a total shambles". Also today, Theresa May wants to talk housing, and a 'new generation of Council housing'. This is one of her pledges to show she is seeking to govern for the many and not the privileged few. Her party is promising to strike new deals with councils and housing associations to give them cash and powers to develop more homes for social rent. The party is setting aside around £1.4bn but is not saying how many new homes will be built. Labour argues that there is no substance to this announcement and describes seven years of failure from the Conservatives in building affordable homes.

  • Happening today

The Lib Dems are promising to protect the international development spending levels at 0.7% of gross national income and launching petition to save the Royal Marines, which the party believes are under threat. The UKIP battle bus is in Essex today, considering the party came second in a number of West Country seats in the last election - will it come here?