What does Keir Starmer think a ‘working person’ is?

Keir Starmer has promised not to raise taxes on ‘working people’. But who, exactly, is a working person? The definition, it turns out, is not so simple. Or rather, Starmer has particular characteristics in mind that might not line up with how others would interpret that phrase.

Speaking on LBC yesterday, Starmer laid out his definition of a working person he would shield from tax rises: ‘people who earn their living,’ he said, who ‘rely on our [public] services and don’t really have the ability to write a cheque when they get into trouble.’ 

It’s the kind of answer that leads to more questions. In the UK practically everyone (regardless of how well-off they are) will be dependent on certain public services, including the NHS which is the only practical way to access an ambulance or certain emergency services. 

The ability to write a cheque when in trouble might not be a sign of your income level, but how much cash a person has on hand at any given time.