A tax rise for care won’t solve the problem

The tax burden in the UK is nearing a 70-year high — but that’s not stopping ministers from mulling over plans to hike taxes further. According to reports this morning, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak are close to agreeing an increase to national insurance to help address the NHS backlog (five million patients in England, and counting). They also want to fill the long-standing black hole in the social care budget: something Johnson promised he’d address nearly two years ago to the day when he first entered Downing Street.

The rumours have immediately led to criticism of the government’s willingness to break its manifesto pledge, not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT. Last week’s vote in the Commons to roll back the UK’s foreign aid spending laid the groundwork to further pivot away from the manifesto — but to break the ‘triple lock’ on taxes promised in 2019 would be seen as ripping up the manifesto completely.