London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Jul 13, 2025

Lower Taxes, Clean Start: Candidates Pledge In Race To Succeed Boris Johnson

Lower Taxes, Clean Start: Candidates Pledge In Race To Succeed Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson on Thursday said he would resign as prime minister, after many of his lawmakers and cabinet colleagues rebelled over his handling of a series of scandals.
The contest to replace British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gathered pace on Sunday as five more candidates declared their intention to run, with many pledging lower taxes and a clean start from Johnson's scandal-ridden premiership.

Johnson on Thursday said he would resign as prime minister, after many of his lawmakers and cabinet colleagues rebelled over his handling of a series of scandals, including breaches of lockdown rules in gatherings at his Downing Street office.

Junior trade minister Penny Mordaunt officially declared she was running on Sunday, joining transport Secretary Grant Shapps, finance minister Nadhim Zahawi and former ministers Jeremy Hunt and Sajid Javid, who announced their candidacies for the leadership in time for the Sunday newspapers, taking the total to nine.

"This is a critical inflection point for our country. I believe that a socialist or socialist-led coalition government at the next election would be a disaster for the UK," Mordaunt said in a statement. "We must win the next election."

The Conservative Party's 1922 Committee of legislators, which groups all backbench members of parliament, will set out the exact rules and timetable for the contest in the coming days, and is looking to speed up the process of whittling down the contenders to a final two.

Conservative Party members would then have the opportunity to vote on the two who reach the run-off, with a result expected by the Conservative Party conference in October, and maybe earlier.

Entering the race, Shapps, Zahawi, Hunt and Javid all pledged tax cuts, setting them against current favourite, former finance minister Rishi Sunak, whose budget last year put Britain on course for its biggest tax burden since the 1950s.

"I believe in a lower tax, lower regulation, cut-the-red-tape economy," Shapps told Sky News, adding he would hold an emergency budget to bring forward a one pence reduction in the income tax rate, currently planned in 2024, and look to reduce the size of the civil service.

"I also want to stop, or freeze if you like, the proposed increase in corporation tax ... and (make) sure we cut the cost of the state," he added.

Hunt, a former foreign minister who came second in the leadership contest in 2019 when Johnson came to office, and Javid, who twice resigned from Johnson's government, both said they would cut corporation tax to 15 per cent.

Hunt said that no Conservative should either raise taxes or offer unfunded tax cuts. Asked if cutting taxes would lead to inflation, Hunt said: "I don't agree with that when it comes to business taxes."

"If you stimulate consumer demand, when there's some demand-led inflation, there is that risk, but we must bear down on inflation. That's why I'd be very careful not to promise (tax) cuts that would stoke inflation," he said.

The Mail on Sunday said Foreign Secretary Liz Truss would launch her campaign on Monday with a promise to cut taxes and tackle the cost-of-living crisis, while one of her main rivals for the role, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, has ruled himself out.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
×