British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labor leader Keir Starmer entered clashed yesterday over how to boost Britain's economy, with the prime minister accusing the opposition party of wanting to raise taxes if it wins the July 4 election, Reuters reported, citing BTA.
In the first televised debates, just a month before the general election, both men largely stuck to their campaign line - Sunak said he alone had a plan to boost Britain's paltry economic growth and Starmer said the Conservatives were at the head of 14 years of economic chaos.
In heated debates (of the kind seen recently in Britain as more voters turn to politics), the two leaders clashed over how to deal with the high-cost-of-living crisis, the ever-longer waiting list for public healthcare and the improvement of the education system.
Asked by a woman in the audience if they were aware of how hard it is to pay your household bills, Sunak said he would cut taxes, while Starmer accused the multi-millionaire Prime Minister of living in "another world".
Sunak once again used the Conservatives' offensive leitmotif that Labor would "raise everyone's taxes by £2,000” ($2550).
"Take my word for it, Labor will raise your taxes. It's in their DNA. Your job, your car, your pension and whatever else you can think of, Labor will tax it,'' Sunak said.
Starmer did not deny the allegation but later called the £2,000 talk "nonsense". Labor has repeatedly said it will not raise income tax or social security contributions if it comes to power.
„My father worked in a factory, he was a locksmith, my mother was a nurse. We didn't have a lot of money growing up, so I know the agonizing anxiety when the postman comes with the bill - what is it, will I be able to pay it? I don't think the Prime Minister understands that,'' the Labor leader told the audience.
Sunak was booed after he blamed the swelling NHS waiting list on strikes, and drew laughter when he said the waiting list was falling because it used to be higher.
Sunak, whose campaign has yet to cut Labour's lead of around 20 points in the polls, however went on the offensive, reiterating that only his party has a plan until voters know what Starmer intends to do if he wins the power.
The debate between the two took place a day after populist Nigel Farage announced he would stand for the election, dealing a major blow to Sunak as the one-time Brexit campaigner Farage is expected to attract many right-wing voters - the very electorate, which conservatives are fighting for.
In announcing the start of his campaign, Farage said he would be "a thorn in the side" the Conservatives as well as Labour. Speaking to dozens of supporters at a rally in south-east England, he said he would not be deterred by what was being said about him or the insults hurled at him, and stressed that it would only encourage him even more.
YouGov poll on "Sky News" later showed British Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader Rishi Sunak winning the first televised election debates by a narrow margin - 51% of those polled thought Sunak had performed better than his Labor rival Starmer (49%).< /p>