RISHI Sunak has denied he is a Tory-lite “quinoa salad” when compared to Nigel Farage’s full-throated conservatism – as he faced his latest election TV quiz.
The Reform boss was described as a full “Sunday roast with all the trimmings” in comparison to the PM’s meagre offering to right-wing voters.
Rishi Sunak launched a defence of his record – and future plan – tonight
The PM sat down for a telly viewing with Nick Robinson
PASunak denied he is a Tory-lite ‘quinoa salad’ when compared to Nigel Farage’s full-throated conservatism[/caption]
On the eve of his make-or-break manifesto launch, Mr Sunak confirmed his party would unveil new tax giveaways on Tuesday.
The under-fire Tory chief will offer tax cuts for millions and a tough clampdown on soaring immigration in a last ditch effort to breathe life into his bid to remain PM.
There will be manifesto giveaways for workers with another 2p cut to National Insurance promised, and a cap on the number of visas issued will be promised in a bid to tackle out of control legal migration rates.
Ahead of his big launch, Mr Sunak issued a direct plea to true-blues, warning them a vote for Farage would let Starmer romp to power.
In a combative BBC interview, he begged Tory voters to stick with him as the only way of stopping lefty Sir Keir seizing the keys to No10 on July 4.
It came as a new poll showed the Tories has already haemorrhaged a fifth of their 2019 support to a resurgent Reform party.
The BBC’s Nick Robinson pressed the PM on the threat from Mr Farage – saying: “A lot of people looking at him and you, they think these Conservatives, he’s a kind of Sunday roast with all the trimmings and you’re a quinoa salad.”
A combative Mr Sunak shot back that “a vote for anyone else – including Nigel Farage’s party – is ultimately a vote that makes it more likely that Keir Starmer is in power.”
Rebutting the charge that he was not Conservative enough he went on: “Well, here’s what we’re offering. Lower taxes, protected pensions, increase in defence spending, a more sensible approach to net zero and a clear plan to both stop the boats and bring down the levels of migration.
“That is what I’m talking to the country about. That’s the choice.”
Mr Sunak will use his manifesto launch tomorrow to try to neutralise the Reform surge that is eating into this voter base.
Mr Farage yesterday boasted of 15,000 new members since he announced his return to frontline politics last week, upending Tory hopes of keeping the election as a straight fight with Labour.
He has accused the Tories of failing to cut taxes and control immigration despite the Brexit decision in 2016.
Mr Sunak tonight admitted last year’s net arrivals of 685,000 was “too high” but said it was down 10 per cent on the year before.
He trumpeted his plan for an annual cap whereby MPs would vote on a hard limit dubbed the “immigration lock”.
And he promised flights to Rwanda would take off as soon as he was reelected to provide “a built-in deterrent” for small boats.
The pair also clashed on taxes, with Mr Sunak confronted over his record on stealth taxes.
Nick Robinson hit out: “Income tax, going up this year. Income tax, going up next year. Income tax, going up the next year. Year after year after year, you are increasing the income tax.”
The BBC man added: “3.7 million more people will pay income tax for the first time because of your policies. 2.7 million extra people will pay higher rate tax, because of your policies. So you are increasing some taxes, income tax in particular, while you’re cutting national insurance.”
But Mr Sunak insisted “the context is important, I’m not going to shy away from what happened” with the pandemic and war in Ukraine hitting the economy.
He added he had to “make those difficult decisions, because that’s right for the financial security of our country.”
However he insisted “But now, taxes are being cut.”
The PM insisted: “The average tax rate faced by a typical person in work is the lowest it has been in over half a century. So, yes, you’re right about the overall tax burden, but for someone in work, an ordinary average worker, today, they face the lowest average tax rate that they have faced in over half a century.”
But the PM confirmed tax cuts are coming, saying “We will have a manifesto… that, yes, does continue to cut people’s taxes, because I believe in a country where people’s hard work is rewarded.”
He added: “The choice in this election is clear, we are going to keep cutting people’s taxes, you’ll see that in our manifesto tomorrow, you’ve seen it in the announcements that we’ve already made, Labour Party are going to put people’s taxes up.”
Mr Sunak defended his use of a controversial claim that Labour would put up taxes on families by £2,000, insisting the party themselves had not rule out rises when quizzed on Monday.
And hinting further at the contents of his manifesto set to be unveiled on Tuesday, he added: “If you someone who wants lower taxes, if you want your pension protected, if you want migration reduced, if you want a sensible approach to net zero that prioritises our security and reducing people’s bills, that’s what I will offer you in this election.”