Can Labour afford to raise taxes?

<p>With the Autumn budget looming, the government has some tough decisions to make. Rachel Reeves has to find a predicted £30bn in extra revenue to meet her self-imposed fiscal rules.</p><br /><p>But as part of its manifesto pledges, Labour promised not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT.</p><br /><p>And after a crushing defeat in Wales last week, what can the government actually get away with without angering the public further?</p><br /><p>Anoosh Chakelian is joined by polling analyst Steve Akehurst.</p><br /><p>Read: <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/economy/2025/07/just-raise-tax" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Just Raise Tax</a> by Will Dunn</p><br /><p>Read: <a href="https://persuasionuk.org/research/budget-2025-options" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Least worst options: understanding voter attitudes in the run up to the 2025 Budget</a></p><p><strong>LISTEN AD-FREE:</strong></p><p>📱<a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/politics/2022/06/newapp" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Download the New Statesman app</a></p><br /><p><strong>MORE FROM THE NEW STATESMAN:</strong></p><p>❓ <a href="https://www.newstatesman.com/podcasts/2022/10/you-ask-us" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ask a question</a> – we answer them every Friday</p><p>⏰ <a href="https://morningcall.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Get our daily politics newsletter</a> every morning</p><p>✍️ <a href="http://saturdayread.substack.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Enjoy the best of our writing</a> via email every Saturday</p><hr /><p style="color: grey; font-size: 0.75em;"> Hosted on Acast. See <a href="https://acast.com/privacy" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: grey;" target="_blank">acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>