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Party (conference) time
It’s that time of year again where the different parties descend on various cities across the country to set out their platforms, dish out some freebies 😉 and, on paper anyway, engage with their memberships.

The Lib Dems kicked things off in Brighton a week and a half ago (there really wasn’t much to report from that one) and Labour have just spent the last week in Liverpool, celebrating their first conference as the party in power in 15 years.
On Monday, Rachel Reeves stepped up to the podium to give her first speech as chancellor of the exchequer. Despite her party’s claim of ‘change’ what she said was very much what we’ve all had to grow used to over the last few years: a long list of spending plans and warnings of tough choices (tax rises) to pay for it. John O’Connell, our chief executive, hit the nail on the head ([link removed]) when he said: “Labour came in promising to step more lightly on people’s lives, but the change they are set to deliver looks likely to be yet another round of spending increases and tax hikes that only further damages household budgets while doing little to reform gravely underperforming public services.”

In an op-ed for City A.M., Elliot Keck, our head of campaigns, pulled no punches ([link removed]) : “There’s no doubt that Reeves was left with a difficult inheritance. The fact that the national debt has just hit 100 per cent of GDP is a case-in-point. But the high-tax, high-spend, reform-lite approach on offer is the same dish that has been endlessly reheated for us for years, just with a different, and already slightly wilted, garnish.”

When the prime minister took to the stage, he was clearly singing from the same hymn sheet as his chancellor but revealed more of his plans to exercise control over our lives. Embracing the ‘nanny knows best’ philosophy, Starmer declared that his government will “take back control” in areas like health, the economy, and the environment. Of course, reading through the lines, we know what he really meant and John summed it up perfectly ([link removed]) when he told the Daily Express: “Starmer claims that he is building a Britain that belongs to the people but in reality he’s tapping up taxpayers to pay for the priorities of backroom bureaucrats, relentless regulators and prying public health lobbyists.”
All this was in stark contrast to the hundreds of people we spoke to at the Reform UK conference in Birmingham the weekend before. We spoke to countless individuals and small business owners who simply want the government off their backs and out of their pockets. If you’re one of those who came over for a chat, welcome!

With this Labour government making no apologies about its commitment to a bigger state, you can rest assured that we’ll be holding their feet to the fire and standing up for taxpayers every step of the way.

If you want to support our mission for a lower, simpler tax system and an end to government waste, click here to chip in to our campaign. ([link removed])
ThinkTent 2024
This week, the TPA team are heading to Birmingham for this year’s ThinkTent ([link removed]) at the Conservative conference. As the Conservatives come to terms with their defeat at the general election, and candidates vie for the leadership, this year’s ThinkTent promises to be one of the most important yet.
We’ve got a packed line up with panels on tax (obviously), our lost liberties, productivity, and more. If you’re attending the conference, pop along and meet the TPA team, join discussions on the topics that matter to taxpayers, and enjoy some lively debates. You can find the full schedule of TPA events here ([link removed]) . If you’re not in Birmingham, you can catch all of our panels on the ThinkTent website ([link removed]) . You won’t want to miss out.
TaxPayers' Alliance in the news
TaxPayers' Alliance in the news

Making his TV debut ([link removed]) , TPA researcher, Shimeon Lee, took to GB News to tackle the issue of rising sickness benefit claimants in the UK and what this means for taxpayers. From fraud and error to expansion of qualifying conditions, the benefits system is riddled with problems.
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Shimeon got straight to the point, explaining to viewers: “40 per cent of the new claims are due to mental health, and this is simply not what the system was designed to cope with.” Check out the full interview here. ([link removed])
Who really decides UK immigration policy?

During the general election, former prime minister Rishi Sunak said that he would introduce a cap on immigration if re-elected. However, it was not the government who would decide on the cap, but the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), a little known or discussed quango. Thanks to the efforts of William Yarwood, our media campaign manager, we now know all about it! ([link removed])
In the latest edition of Quango Watch ([link removed]) for CapX, William goes from top to bottom highlighting the role, remit and budget of the MAC with insights into how this quango has grown over the years to become such a powerful voice in advising and deciding on immigration policy. Have a read of William’s article here. ([link removed])
We’re not out of the woods

With the rumour mill in overdrive that the chancellor might scrap the single-person council tax discount, we were pleased when Reeves ruled out including such a move in the upcoming budget. But as always, the devil is in the detail ([link removed]) . In his latest op-ed for ConservativeHome, Elliot correctly reminds us that we aren’t out of the woods yet.
The trouble with Rachel Reeves’ comments is that the budget can’t be used to impose the widow’s tax. As Elliot explains: “Scrapping the single-person discount requires primary legislation and could not be enacted using this budget.” All the chancellor has done is rule out something she couldn’t have done at the budget anyway. ([link removed]) We’ll be keeping a close eye to make sure this cruel policy doesn’t raise its ugly head again.
It’s raining money

British weather is known to be unpredictable, and I’m sure we can all call to mind a recent time when the forecasters just got it completely wrong. It seemed to happen most days this week...While the weather may be unpredictable, one thing isn’t - bonuses at the MET Office. A record £6 million was doled out ([link removed]) to staff last year. This comes after (and perhaps because) accuracy of predictions was removed as a factor when deciding bonus payments.
Speaking to the Express, I told readers: “Having scrapped the link to accurate forecasting, it shouldn’t be a surprise bonuses are surging. Bosses should take the temperature of the public and link rewards to performance.”
Blog of the week
The energy windfall tax is economic self harm

This week’s blog ([link removed]) comes to us courtesy of Scottish Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser. The focus of Murdo’s ire is the energy profits levy (EPL).
Murdo makes the case ([link removed]) for scrapping the levy so that investment and jobs, especially in Aberdeen “the beating heart of UK energy” can be encouraged rather than jeopardised. Frasier also points out how the one-off windfall tax has now been extended to 2030, proving Miltion Freidman’s old line right that “nothing is so permanent as a temporary government programme”. Ain’t that the truth!

Click to read more ([link removed])
War on Waste
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This week, Joanna Marchong, our investigations campaign manager, called out the hypocrisy ([link removed]) of Labour's decision to cut the winter fuel payment for many pensioners but have taxpayers footing the bill for their own energy bills. Joanna wants to know what you guys think…

Benjamin Elks
Grassroots Development Manager

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