'Cosplaying Liz Truss': Rishi Sunak faces backlash over £17 billon tax giveaway

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has unveiled a £17billion tax giveaway as the highlight of the Conservative manifesto, a proposal that was promptly slammed as "implausible" and good only for wealthier voters.

The policy programme unveiled by the prime minister, seen by Tory MPs as possibly the party’s last big chance to win over voters, contained few big surprises and was centred around cuts to national insurance and stamp duty, higher thresholds for child benefit and help for pensioners.

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Launching the manifesto at Silverstone racetrack in Northamptonshire, Sunak accepted he faced an uphill task in convincing voters, not least after his early departure from D-day commemorations last week.

"I recognise that people are frustrated with our party and with me," the prime minister said.

However, by cutting taxes, he added, "we are upholding the legacy of Margaret Thatcher and Nigel Lawson, a party that, unlike Labour, believes in sound money."

The tax cuts are projected to cost £17.2 billion annually by 2029-30.

Much of the funding is expected to come from cracking down on tax avoidance and significantly reducing the welfare bill through unspecified methods.

Think tanks have warned there is a significant risk that the financial calculations may not be feasible.

Hours after Sunak launched the manifesto, Labour produced its own costings, which predicted a £17.4 billion annual shortfall by the end of the parliament.

Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, said Sunak was “cosplaying Liz Truss” and risked sparking another rise in mortgage rates.

Launching the manifesto to an audience including almost all the cabinet, Sunak announced another two per cent cut to national insurance contributions (NICs) and the gradual abolition of all NICs for self-employed people.

After the manifesto was announced, some Tory MPs were hopeless. “It’s not going to shift the dial,” one said. Others felt it gave them some material to work with in their local constituencies.

Sunak has repeatedly attacked Labour over its spending plans, making the much-criticised claim that this would result in £2,000 of extra taxes a household.

However, his tax and spend plans are now coming under significant scrutiny – and some scepticism.

Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said the manifesto could be characterised as “definite giveaways paid for by uncertain, unspecific and apparently victimless savings”.

(With inputs from agencies)