Jeremy Hunt declares it is his 'moral duty' to cut taxes as he finalises Budget

Jeremy Hunt insisted he has a “moral duty” to put money in people’s pockets as finalised a personal tax budget giveaway.

The Chancellor and Prime Minister were locked in talks last night over whether they can go further than planned to offer a 2p cut by finding money elsewhere.

Tory MPs are pushing for a big election offer after the tax burden reached a post war high.

Mr Hunt said: “All conservatives believe that the state has a moral duty to leave as much money in people’s pockets as possible because it belongs to the people who earn that money.

“But we all know that it is not conservative to cut taxes, for example, by increasing borrowing because then you are just passing on the bill to future generations.”

Mr Hunt added: “So what you saw in the autumn statement was a turning point, when we cut 2p off the national insurance rate.

“We will hope to make some progress on that journey but we are going to do so in a responsible way.”

Last month, the Daily Express revealed Mr Hunt was considering a penny off national insurance contributions (NICs) in the Budget.

But he has since ordered officials to look at ways to fund a 2p cut to personal taxes.

Lowering income tax instead of NICs would help pensioners as well as workers but is more expensive.

Both Mr Hunt and the PM had indicated they were planning big tax cuts at the start of the year but have notably dampened down expectations in the last few weeks.

The amount of cash they have to make changes has gone from £30 billion to around £13 billion, with nearly half of that earmarked for ‘“rainy day” funds.

Mr Hunt ruled out borrowing to fund tax cuts and promised a “path” towards a lower tax economy on Wednesday.

It means the Chancellor has to find savings elsewhere, either by increasing other taxes or cutting public spending.

He said: “This will be a prudent and responsible Budget for long-term growth, tackling inflation, more investment, more jobs and that path to lower taxation as and when we can afford that.”

The Chancellor said this weekend he wants to end waste in the civil service to claw back some money to increase Treasury coffers.

Around one in seven jobs could be axed in the plan to bring the workforce down to pre-pandemic levels.

Mr Hunt said: “More spending doesn’t automatically buy better public services. We have to support our public servants to get back to doing what matters most – teaching our kids, treating us when we’re sick, or keeping us safe.”

A number of small tax reforms have also been floated, such as clamping down on second home owners who rent out their properties as holiday lets, affecting around 127,000 properties.

He is also looking at whether to find money by reforming non-dom tax rules that reduce the amount foreign nationals pay in the UK if it is not their permanent home.

Dan Wilson Craw, deputy chief executive of Generation Rent, said tenants have lost out to tourists after favourable tax rates led to an increase in holiday lets.

He added: “The shortage of homes to live in has driven people away from the areas they grew up in. That’s why Generation Rent and thousands of our supporters, including renters who have been evicted to make way for holiday lets, have been campaigning for these tax perks to be scrapped.

“A fairer tax system for holiday homes would be a very positive step for the government to take, and we look forward to hearing more in the Budget.”

A freeze on income tax thresholds means more pensioners will have to fill out tax returns following the inflation-matching rise in the state pension.

It means an income tax cut would be welcomed by older voters.

But a penny off income tax would cost £7 billion, two billion more than cutting the same amount off national insurance.

Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, said: “Many on modest incomes will find that their triple lock pension increase has been eroded by the freeze on personal tax allowances.

“Every April thousands more older people are brought into the tax system because of this sneaky and iniquitous tax hike.

“If there is any case for tax cuts, the fairest would be to unfreeze personal allowances. “National insurance cuts only benefit working people and cuts in inheritance tax or capital gains tax favour the wealthy.”

Latest research from Savanta found the public view the Conservatives as stronger on the economy than the Labour Party, despite the disastrous mini-budget under Liz Truss.

Some 40% of voters said they associate Rishi Sunak’s party with economic security over 35% who chose the opposition.

The Budget will include a significant funding package for research and development across the life sciences, automotive and aerospace sectors.

Some £92 million in joint state and industry investment will go into expanding facilities to manufacture life-saving medicines and diagnostics products.

A further £200 million will go to zero-carbon aircraft technology and £73 million in motoring technology.

Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said: “Today’s announcement builds on the success of our Advanced Manufacturing plan announced last year, and will ensure we continue to grow the economy, help create jobs and secure the future of great British manufacturing.

“Our plan for the British economy is working – which is why firms like Airbus and BMW are continuing to bet on Britain.”