The Prime Minister said on Wednesday that his Conservative Party would raise the threshold at which workers start to pay the National Insurance payroll tax to £12,000 a year. National Insurance is currently payable on earnings over £8,632 a year, and the increase in the starting threshold would bring it in line with income tax.
Mr Johnson said in response to a question at a campaign event ahead of a general election on December 12: “We’re going to be cutting National Insurance up to 12,000,”
The Prime Minister was asked what his “low tax” policies would mean for hard-working Britons.
Mr Johnson responded: “I mean low tax for working people.
“If we look at what we’re doing and what I’ve said in the last few days, we’re going to be cutting National Insurance up to £12,000,
“We’re going to be making sure that we cut business rates for small businesses. We are cutting tax for working people.”
The threshold is currently set at £8,632.
Claims have been made the announcement was premature with the Financial Times reporter at the scene claiming: “PM TV interviews delayed as Tory officials decide what to do.”
The Prime Minister was talking to workers at a fabrication yard in Teesside.
Mr Johnson had previously floated the idea during the Tory leadership contest.
At the time the Institute for Fiscal Studies said a move to £12,500 would cost between £11billion and £17bn a year.
More to follow…
