Gordon back David Cameron

Local Tory Parliamentary hopeful, Gordon Henderson, has given his backing to new Conservative plans to stop a new jobs tax on working families and local firms across Sittingbourne and Sheppey.

Gordon Brown said that he will increase National Insurance on both workers and local businesses. Under Labour’s tax-raising plans, anyone earning over £20,000 a year will see their pay packet shrink. Labour will also increase the tax that local firms pay for hiring workers who earn £5,700 a year or more.

By contrast, a Conservative Government will stop the most damaging part of Labour’s tax on jobs by cutting government waste while protecting frontline services. The cost of Labour’s tax rise on employers will be reduced by more than half. And anyone earning between £7,100 and £45,400 – seven out of ten working people across the country – will be up to £150 a year better off than under Labour’s plans.

At least 20,000 working people across Sittingbourne and Sheppey will be better off as a result. A typical nurse, teacher, fire-fighter or police officer would save £150 a year. People on lower incomes will benefit the most as a proportion of their incomes. An estimated 7,748 jobs across the South East could be saved by making it less expensive for local firms to hire workers.

Mr Henderson said:
“For the last 13 years, working people Sittingbourne and Sheppey have seen their taxes go up and up and their money wasted. Now Gordon Brown is planning a tax on jobs that will hit anyone earning over £20,000 a year and destroy thousands of jobs by taxing local firms more.

“Local businesses are struggling to cope with the effects of the recession. They tell me that we are not yet out of the woods and they believe that the Government’s proposed NI increase will kill any hope of a recovery.

“When David Cameron visited Morrison’s last week he promised me that a Conservative Government would cut waste to enable us to chop Labour’s tax on jobs. More than 20,000 working people in our community will be better off with the Conservatives and that is something worth fighting for.”