Ed Miliband Proud of Labour's Tax Raids on the Wealthy

Ed Miliband has declared that he is “proud” of Labour’s tax raid on the wealthy. The Energy Secretary insisted decisions made by Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves were “fair” despite accusations that the Government had suffocated growth and opportunity. Ms Reeves used her first Budget to target non-doms, private schools and private jets, while also increasing levies on the profits of private equity bosses. The Chancellor has raised taxes by about £80bn overall, including a £25bn National Insurance raid on businesses and forcing farmers to pay inheritance tax for the first time. However, Mr Miliband claimed the decisions made by Ms Reeves would benefit “ordinary families” despite stagnant economic growth and rising inflation. He told Sky News: “The whole purpose of this Government is to stand up for ordinary families and this cost of living crisis is not just something that arose when Russia invaded Ukraine and bills went through the roof. “It’s a 15-year issue that families have faced, it’s something that so many families feel. So we are proud of taking action, including through taxation, to make a difference.” Challenged on the Government’s direction of travel, he responded: “We’ve made a decision that the fair thing to do is to raise taxes on the wealthy to cut bills for everybody and that’s a choice of the Government. That’s what fair taxation is all about. “I think the point is that some people are paying for it and we’ve made a decision that the fair and right thing to do is to make the decision that we did.” The Tories have said they would seek to reverse the Government’s war on wealth with a string of tax cuts, while Reform UK has said it would cut taxes as soon as it felt able to. Taxpayers to foot bill for green energy plan Mr Miliband also defended his plan to fit solar panels on all new houses and install heat pumps in nearly half a million homes every year. Under his £15bn green energy plan, solar panels, heat pumps, insulation and double glazing will be fitted on five million homes for people on low incomes at the expense of the taxpayer. Building regulations that will be announced later this year will also block housebuilders from installing gas fires and boilers in new homes. Arguing that the cost of living was the biggest issue facing the UK, Mr Miliband said: “Because the cost of heat pumps has come down, because we’ve cut the costs of electricity in the Budget … with the right tariff, it’s cheaper to run a heat pump than a boiler.” Mr Miliband then refused to give a “guarantee” that installing a heat pump would lead to cheaper energy bills. He said: “There’s two aspects to this. There’s running a heat pump, and you can now save money compared to running a boiler, and then there’s an upfront cost. “Because the costs are coming down it’s becoming competitive with a boiler. I’m not giving a guarantee but I think all of the evidence I think from suppliers and others is that you can cut the costs. “And we want this to be in the reach not just of the wealthiest in society but for everyone. And why shouldn’t people have access to the cheaper kit, to the thing that’s cheaper to run?” No deal with Burham Mr Miliband, who was Labour leader from 2010 to 2015, also denied speculation he could serve as chancellor in a future government led by Andy Burnham. He said: “It’s absolute copper bottom nonsense. I’ve had no such conversations, it’s absolute balderdash, 100 per cent wrong.” Mr Burnham, the Labour Mayor of Greater Manchester, has refused to rule out challenging Sir Keir in the future. He is not currently able to do so because he is not a sitting MP. However, rumours persist in Westminster that a Labour MP may stand down and force a by-election in which Mr Burnham could stand.