Finance (No. 2) Bill

We know what the big issues are with growth. We are having to deal with the aftermath of the financial crisis, with the eurozone crisis, with high commodity prices and with the terrible fiscal situation we inherited from Labour. Having an uncompetitive top rate of income tax does not help, a point that previous Labour Governments recognised until we got to the fag end of the previous Government when, as a political ploy, the then Prime Minister put the rate up to 50p. It is striking how the Opposition will not confirm that they will return to a 50p rate.