Labour MP warns Tories and Reform will lead Britain down 'path to higher costs'

Oct 19, 2025 - 12:12

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Labour MP warns Tories and Reform will lead Britain down 'path to higher costs'

A Labour MP has warned that the Tories and Reform would lead Britain down the "path to higher costs".

Speaking on the Camilla Tominey show, Luke Murphy slammed the cross-party desire to ditch the unpopular tax hikes which were set out by Rachel Reeves last October.

He further slammed the Conservatives' new economic policy to axe stamp duty altogether, which the MP claimed was "unfunded".

“What I don't support, because I've heard several calls from the Conservatives, the Lib Dems and Reform to cancel the National Insurance increase that was made last year, to cancel a load of other taxes, and then to go further, to have tens of billions of pounds of cuts in spending, as well as unfunded tax cuts like scrapping Stamp Duty.

“That is a path to a higher cost of living for my constituents. It is unfunded tax cuts that led to interest rates rising."

Yet swirling speculation has heightened ever since No10 has refused to rule out a number of tax hikes, echoing the mantra of no increases of National Insurance, VAT and income tax.

Mr Murphy said: “What my constituents are worried about, and I hear it on the door, week in, week out, I had several conversations last weekend with several constituents about the cost of living and the pressures that they're facing, whether it's with energy prices or food prices or anything else.

“What I want to see in the Budget, and I know what Rachel and the Government are focused on, is easing that cost of living and getting growth back in our economy.

“We are only going to be able to have the investment in the public services that we all rely on, that we need, invest in the security to protect our country, and to ensure that people have more money in their pockets if we get growth in the economy.”

However, he toed his party's line by failing to rule out any tax raids on Britons this November.

"What Rachel Reeves will do in the Budget, and what the Government is seeking to do, is to ensure that we have growth in the economy, that we provide the investment that our public services need," he told Camilla, dodging her question.

"One of the things, and one of the reasons I was elected in the General Election was because our National Health Service did not have the funding that it needed."

LATEST ON RACHEL REEVES' BUDGET:

Now, he insisted that his Government was beginning to "turn around" the state of the health service, hitting out at the Tories' legacy.

"Of course, this Government absolutely wants to see people have more money in their pocket, and that is an absolutely central tenet of what this Government is trying to achieve," he claimed.

"But we will not do things that undermine the stability in our economy, or make unfunded commitments, which previous Governments have done and all of the opposition parties are now doing."

However, the Tories have insisted that their party is the only group to be trusted to handle the economy, while Reform has worked to restructure their economic plans to bolster voter trust in their fiscal credibility.

In September, deputy chief of the populist party Richard Tice deemed Reform's 2024 General Election manifesto "not appropriate" for the next election.

Nigel Farage is now preparing to announce that his party will break his previous promise to make £90billion in tax cuts.

Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch announced that her party would scrap stamp duty at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester, saying: "That is how we will help achieve the dream of home ownership for millions."

Most recently, ex-Labour Prime Minister Sir Tony Blair came out in support of income tax cuts, suggesting that it would prove a successful incentive to work.

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