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Greens vow tax hike on wealthier to fund NHS and housing

PA Media Green Party co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay during the Green Party General Election campaign launchPA Media

The Green Party has launched its manifesto pledging to raise taxes on the better off to fund more spending on housing, the NHS and the climate crisis.

This includes introducing a new wealth tax and raising the National Insurance (NI) on annual wages above £50,270.

Party co-leader Adrian Ramsay said the Greens were the "only party being honest" about the tax rises they claim are needed.

Mr Ramsay said the Greens were not expecting to form the next government but their MPs will be in Parliament to "speak up for you on the issues you care about".

The party pledged to spend £50bn per year on health and social care by 2030. It is focused on the four seats which it thinks are winnable.

At the manifesto launch in Hove, co-leaders Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay said electing Green MPs would "push Labour to be bolder", particularly on Net Zero climate change policies, which they accused other parties of "running away from".

“Most people are working harder and yet getting poorer,” Ms Denyer told supporters, but “transforming” tax would “end the rip-off of rising bills, appalling services and shareholders trousering millions”.

The Greens want to introduce a new wealth tax of 1% on assets worth over £10m, and 2% on assets worth more than £1bn.

They say the new wealth tax would affect fewer than 1% of UK households and raise £15bn a year by the end of the next Parliament, with the money going to the NHS.

Mr Ramsay said the increase was "modest" by European standards. He said a small number of millionaires may leave the UK as a result but insisted the super rich would stay.

Currently employees pay no National Insurance until they earn more than £12,570, 8% on earnings of between £12,570 and £50,270, and 2% on earnings of above £50,270 for the 2023/24 tax year.

Under the Greens' plans, the 8% rate would be paid on all wages above the upper earnings threshold.

This is equivalent to an extra £283.74 per year in tax for someone earning £55,000.

The Greens say both tax hikes will raise £70bn.

Arun Advani, a wealth expert from the University of Warwick said raising this much through a wealth tax was credible, depending on the design.

However, Institute for Fiscal Studies deputy director Helen Miller said the Greens were unlikely to raise as much revenue as expected and the party's manifesto states borrowing will be £80bn higher.

While a recurrent wealth tax could raise revenue it would be "tough to implement", she said.

She added: "Restricting upfront income tax relief on pension contributions would also be difficult to achieve - and would hit a lot of workers on not terribly high salaries - many nurses and teachers for example."

A graphic which reads 'more on general election 2024'

Other key policies include:

  • Introducing rent controls and providing150,000 new social homes every year
  • Guaranteeing access to an NHS dentist
  • Investing in public transport and bringing railways into public ownership
  • Phasing out nuclear energy
  • Ending sewage dumping in rivers
  • Stopping all new fossil fuel projects in the UK
  • Banning domestic flights for journeys that take less than three hours by train.

Sian Berry, who is the party's candidate for the Brighton Pavilion constituency, said the "rental rollercoaster" is "destroying lives" and bringing in rent controls, stabilising tenancies and ending no-fault evictions was "not a pipe dream".

"Decided locally and based on what the housing market looks like in the local community, this would allow all of us to make sure rents are affordable and stay connected with local earnings."

The party also set out plans to make homes warmer and cheaper to run by increasing energy efficiency.

On transport, the Greens say aviation is the fastest-growing source of CO2 emissions, and claim “it’s the wealthiest driving this trend”.

They want to introduce a frequent-flyer levy and stop airport expansions.

Campaign group Flight Free UK said the proposed domestic flight ban would apply to so few routes it would be be "fairly pointless".

The Greens plan to field candidates in every constituency in England and Wales for the 4 July election. The Scottish Greens are a separate party.

Mr Ramsay also confirmed four out of 574 candidates have been replaced after the party launched an investigation into reports of antisemitic or extreme comments.

He said: "Out of that huge number, there were four who were originally selected who are now not going forward and have had new candidates put in their place."

When pressed over other candidates who had been investigated, he said: "I can't recite every candidate" adding that the process is "separate from the leadership as a matter of good governance".