Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer was accused today of planning more massive tax rises after failing to rule them out in fiery clashes in the House of Commons. It comes on top of a hike in National Insurance which Conservatives say will cost people an average of £3,500 each, plus rising council tax, water and energy bills in what has been dubbed "awful April".

A Conservative Party spokesman said: "Today the Prime Minister was asked if he would change the fiscal rules or put up taxes to sort the public finances and he failed to answer. With working families already feeling the strain from Awful April’s bill increases, plus the £3,500 hit from Labour’s Jobs Tax, they now also face the uncertainty of further tax rises hanging over their heads."

It came after Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch challenged Sir Keir to rule out further tax increases, telling Parliament: "During the election, the Prime Minister also promised that he would not increase taxes on working people." But she said the National Insurance tax rise, although levied on employers, would leave families £3,500 poorer. Ms Badenoch asked: "Why should anyone trust him again?"

Sir Keir claimed that Labour is "clearing up the mess" left by the previous Conservative government and repeated claims that Labour had inherited a "£22billion black hole".

Households face a series of extra costs coming into effect this month, including an average £123 annual increase in water bills, a £111 average increase in energy bills, a £109 increase in band D council tax and higher prices for phones and broadband.
Conservatives say costs for the average household will rise by £1,000 in total.

This comes on top of Labour’s increase in National Insurance, which is officially levied on employers but will ultimately be paid by workers and cost households £3,500, the Tories say.

Mrs Badenoch also highlighted the plight of the British car industry following warnings that thousands of jobs are at risk. A study by think tank the IPPR has warned that if US President Donald Trump confirms 25 per cent tariffs on US car imports, this will put extreme pressure on the UK car manufacturing industry, threatening jobs and economic growth.

Over 25,000 direct jobs in the car manufacturing industry could be at risk as exports to America are predicted to fall, with UK employees at Jaguar Land Rover and the Cowley Mini factory seen as some of the most exposed. However, the think tank said the UK could benefit from growing demand for electric cars because of the success of firms such as Jaguar or Nissan in the North East if they received the right government support.

Over a third (35 per cent) of cars manufactured in the UK in 2024 were electric or hybrid models, many of which were exported.