British Prime Minister Liz Truss argued in a Saturday opinion piece for an economic agenda centered upon tax cuts and deregulation.
The new Conservative Party government on Friday canceled a rise in the corporate tax rate, cut the basic income tax rate to 19%, and began discussions about special economic zones in multiple regions of the United Kingdom. In her article for The Daily Mail, Truss said that lawmakers had emphasized agendas prioritizing redistribution rather than growth.
“For too long, politicians have fought over how to slice up the economic pie,” she explained. “We will focus instead on growing the pie to the benefit of families and businesses.”
Most European countries have a progressive income tax structure, by which higher earners pay a larger portion of their salaries than lower earners. At the beginning of this year, Britain had a top personal income tax rate of 45% — a figure lower than most European countries, yet higher than the 37% rate in the United States, according to a report from the Tax Foundation.
“People know better than any government what to do with their hard-earned money,” Truss continued. “And so we have set out our clear plan to deliver £45 billion of tax cuts in what will be the biggest tax-cutting package for generations.”
As Europe faces soaring energy prices, the British government announced a new round of oil and gas leases for the North Sea and lifted its moratorium on shale gas production. The ban was initially established three years ago amid concerns over earthquakes. Meanwhile, member states of the European Union — which Britain exited in early 2020 — have pushed renewable power amid the energy crisis in accordance with the goal of becoming “a climate-neutral society” by 2050.
Truss also introduced a proposal to limit the annual cost of power for a typical household to £2,500 for the next two years. The nation’s government had already greenlit the Energy Bills Support Scheme, slated to remove £400 from residents’ power bills each month over the upcoming winter.
“Our energy scheme will save the typical household £1,000 a year on their bills and roughly halve the cost of business energy bills,” she wrote. “We believe people should be in control of their lives and keep more of the money they earn.”
Truss, who succeeded fellow Conservative Party member Boris Johnson earlier this month, has drawn comparisons to her predecessor, former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, as well as former U.S. President Ronald Reagan. She said in the opinion piece that her government is on the side of “all those who take responsibility and do the right thing, from setting up their own businesses to working hard and aspiring to a better life for themselves and their family.”
“We will get Britain moving by cementing our status as the best place in the world to do business. We are putting our money where our mouth is in encouraging businesses to invest, create jobs and grow,” Truss wrote. “We have followed through on our promise to suspend the corporation tax rise, with the result that our attractiveness to businesses will remain unbeatable.”