Thursday 11 August 2022 09:40 PM Rishi Sunak claims Liz Truss's stance will leave MILLIONS at risk of 'real ... trends now
Tory leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak tonight continued their fierce clashes over how they would deal with the cost-of-living crisis if they become prime minister.
In a sixth official leadership hustings, Ms Truss insisted tax cuts would always be her 'first port of call' to help struggling households, with her second priority to deal with energy supply issues.
The Foreign Secretary also effectively ruled out extending the windfall tax on energy giants to fund extra support for families, which was introduced by Mr Sunak when he was chancellor.
She claimed such levies were a 'Labour idea' that were 'all about bashing business', as she insisted profits should not be seen as 'something that’s dirty and evil'.
But Mr Sunak - who has vowed to spend billions of pounds more on direct payments for the poorest this autumn and winter - launched a stinging counter-attack on Ms Truss's economic approach.
He claimed his rival's focus on tax cuts to help people with soaring bills, rather than direct support, would 'leave millions of incredibly vulnerable people at the risk of real destitution'.
Elsewhere in tonight's hustings event:
Ms Truss promised to lift the ban on fracking so it could take place in areas with local support; She left open the possibility of leaving the European Convention on Human Rights in order to prevent a legal block on the Rwanda migrant scheme; The Foreign Secretary ruled out a cap on immigration, saying that she didn't believe in an 'arbitrary target'; Mr Sunak revealed he has messaged and called Boris Johnson since resigning as chancellor, but had yet to receive a response; The ex-chancellor said he would fine people £10 for mssing NHS appointments; He warned that scrapping the independence of the Bank of England would be a 'massive mistake'.
Liz Truss effectively ruled out extending the windfall tax on energy giants to fund extra support for families
Rishi Sunak claimed his rival's focus on tax cuts to help people with soaring bills, rather than direct support, would 'millions' at the risk of 'real destitution'
In a sixth official leadership hustings, the Tory leadership candidates continued their fierce clashes over how they would deal with the cost-of-living crisis if they become PM
Having traded blows all week over their competing economic visions, it was no surprise that tonight's hustings saw Ms Truss and Mr Sunak trade fresh barbs over how they would deal with the cost-of-living crisis.
The Foreign Secretary has repeatedly taken aim at Mr Sunak's hike to National Insurance and vowed to reverse a planned rise in Corporation Tax.
She said tonight that her 'first preference is always to reduce taxes', adding: 'I do not like Gordon Brown-style economics where you take money off people in taxes and give it back in benefits.
'If the answer to every question is raising tax, we will choke off economic growth, and we will send ourselves to penury, and I think that’s a massive problem.'
Ms Truss also effectively ruled out expanding the windfall tax on oil and gas firms, despite recent speculation the Treasury wants it to be one of the options on the table for funding cost of living support.
'One thing I absolutely don't support is a windfall tax,' the Foreign Secretary said.
'I think it's a Labour idea, it's all about bashing business and it sends the wrong message to international investors and to the public.'
She added: 'I don’t think profit is a dirty word, and the fact it’s become a dirty word in our society is a massive problem.
