Britain’s Labour government has announced large tax hikes in its first post-election budget.
The Labour Party, led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, took power in July for the first time in 14 years.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves told Parliament on Wednesday that to protect working people, taxes on businesses and the wealthy will be raised by 40 billion pounds, or about 52 billion dollars.
This would include increasing the contributions to the National Health Service paid by companies and applying a value added tax to private schools.
Reeves said, “Any responsible Chancellor would need to make difficult decisions today” to fill the “hole” in public finances left by the Conservative Party.
She added that the minimum wage for most workers will be raised to over 12 pounds, or about 15 dollars, per hour, and that spending on public health services and national defense would also be increased.
The Starmer administration decided to push through a tough budget, backed by Labour’s overwhelming majority in Parliament.
But opposition parties are stepping up criticism of Labour, saying it has violated its campaign promise not to raise taxes.