Saying the things that practically no other Labour MP will say, Frank Field writes an incisive article in today’s Independent. Number 10 will not be amused by his claim that there’s a “very serious possibility of a sterling crisis'”, but I figure it’s this passage that should worry them most:
“…tax increases are unavoidable even in the short run, and the Government should seize that necessity to help make our tax system more progressive. In times of economic decline it is more, not less important, to protect the poorest by developing initiatives that shift any increase in the tax burden onto those with the widest shoulders…
…increasing taxes on some, and cash limiting public expenditure, will mark a step change to a political culture built on debt. This programme must be implemented through the next Budget and requires the Prime Minister to open genuine discussion with the leaders of the other two major parties to get an agreement that matches the hour.”Given the rumblings that Field’s not happy with the 10p tax compensation package, it’s hard not to read his call for a “more progressive” tax system to be “implemented through the next Budget” as an ultimatum. So will we be seeing another Field-marshalled rebellion in the not-too-distant? I certainly wouldn’t bet against it.
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