In government Liberal Democrats say have 'fought tooth and nail' to deliver a tax cut worth £825 for more than 26m working people - something which the Lib Dems point out David Cameron said during the 2010 election debate on ITV it was not affordable. The party also note that Labour have voted against raising the income tax threshold at every opportunity since 2010. The Lib Dems say by raising the personal tax allowance to £10,600 they have lifted more than 3m people out of paying income tax altogether. As well as helping families make their money go further they say they're also lifting the lowest paid out of paying tax.
The Liberal Democrats say that by April their tax cut will have helped:
- 340,000 sales and retail assistants will no longer pay income tax.
- 169,000 care workers and home carers will no longer pay income tax.
- 162,000 cleaners will no longer pay income tax.
- 136,000 catering assistants will no longer pay income tax.
- 91,000 teaching assistants will no longer pay income tax.
Commenting Liberal Democrat Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander said: "This shows that our Liberal Democrat flagship policy of dramatically increasing the amount that people can earn before they pay income tax amounts to the greatest revolution in the tax landscape for working people in living memory. Repairing our economy after the 2008 crash has been a daunting task. Tackling it, and tackling it fairly, was the main reason that we formed the coalition in 2010 and income tax cuts for working people are top of our fairness agenda. Recovering from the crash of the Labour years is a long process. There is a lot more to be done to fully repair the economy and to continue to get the financial pressure of families. That’s why we Liberal Democrats are committed to raising the personal allowance still further, to £12,500 over the next Parliament."
Liberal Democrat Leader and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: These figures underline like never before the sheer scale of the tax cuts delivered by the Liberal Democrats for working households across Britain. Many, including the Prime Minister, said it could not be done, but Danny Alexander and I have cut taxes for low and middle earners while pulling our country's economy back from the brink where it was left by Labour. And it's not over yet. The Liberal Democrats may have cut people's taxes by £825 but if we are in government again after 2015, we will cut them by a further £380 by raising the point at which you start paying tax to £12,500."
