
The prime minister strikes a series of unusual poses on the front pages of UK papers as he sets out his tax hike plan, with MPs likely to pass the £12bn healthcare levy on Wednesday.
The Guardian’s headline asks whether the plan will deliver. It quotes Labour leader Keir Starmer, social care providers and charities saying that the extra resources will be insufficient or, as Starmer puts it, like “a sticking plaster over a gaping wound”.
Guardian front page, Wednesday 8 September 2021: PM stakes reputation on £12bn health plan – but will it deliver? pic.twitter.com/tBZQSRfJ3H
— The Guardian (@guardian) September 7, 2021
A jagged red graph runs over Johnson’s face in the Daily Telegraph alongside the headline “Highest taxes since the war.” The line shows taxes as a percentage of gross national income from 1953 to the projected level under the proposal.
The front page of tomorrow's Daily Telegraph:
— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) September 7, 2021
'Highest taxes since the War'#TomorrowsPapersToday
Sign up for the Front Page newsletterhttps://t.co/x8AV4Oomry pic.twitter.com/yHDse4WrOH
The Times has a photograph of a masked Johnson holding a coffee mug hand painted with a star, a heart and the words “social care”, taken at a visit to a London care home on Tuesday. Its headline: “Tax burden will rise to highest in 70 years”. The new levy is the “first significant new tax since VAT half a century ago,” the paper reports, though it points out that the overall tax burden - at 35.5% – will still be lower than Germany at 39%, and France at 40%.
Wednesday’s TIMES: “Tax burden will rise to highest in 70 years” #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/IvpaE6aZd7
— Allie Hodgkins-Brown (@AllieHBNews) September 8, 2021
In the Daily Mail, a masked and aproned Johnson chats to an elderly woman at the care home. “Now make the care worth the cost, Boris,” the paper demands. The “good news”, it says, is “After years of neglect, a plan at last for UK’s social care crisis”. The bad news, is the highest tax burden “in history,” as well as help for families not starting for two years.
Wednesday's @DailyMailUK #MailFrontPages pic.twitter.com/mjH0VRkYnz
— Daily Mail U.K. (@DailyMailUK) September 7, 2021
Metro has the PM playing Connect 4, with the caption “gamechanging”. The headline is “Boris plays ‘catch-up’: tax and spend Tories”.
Tomorrow's paper tonight 📰
— Metro (@MetroUK) September 7, 2021
TAX AND SPEND TORIES
🔴PM breaks manifesto vow with 1.2% NI Rise
🔴 £5.4bn to fund social care over three years
🔴Pensions triple lock 'temporarily' scrapped #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/1dSlhlymoG
The Sun has Johnson rolling a pair of dice, the faces depicting coronavirus, sterling, and the NHS logo. This is “Bojo’s biggest gamble,” it says.
Tomorrow's front page: What Boris Johnson’s tax hikes mean for your finances after he unveils biggest social care reforms in a generation https://t.co/OSzSHLwZFg pic.twitter.com/v5DIuW7ECL
— The Sun (@TheSun) September 7, 2021
The i paper plays it straight, with “New era of tax hikes to pay for NHS and social care”.
Wednesday's front page: New era of tax hikes to pay for NHS and social care#TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/7fbCz2NkSU
— i newspaper (@theipaper) September 7, 2021
On the Financial Times: “Johnson defies rebels and unveils £12bn tax rise for health and care”. It calls the strategy one that “moves the Conservatives firmly into Labour territory”.
Wednesday's FT: "Johnson defies rebels and unveils £12bn tax rise for health and care" #BBCPapers #TomorrowsPapersToday https://t.co/7FuHsAa3Vz pic.twitter.com/frwueQBmEt
— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) September 7, 2021
The Daily Express focuses on health secretary Savid Javid saying he’ll “make every penny of extra funding count,” calling it a “Promise you’ll want to hear”.
Tomorrow's front page: Health Secretary's vow on £36bn NHS and social care rescue plan#TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/4yDPmKKadx
— Daily Express (@Daily_Express) September 7, 2021
On the Daily Mirror: “He still doesn’t get it … Careless,” with one if its key points “struggling workers to be hit hardest in funding plan”. The photograph is of the prime minister looking dumbfounded.
Tomorrow’s front page: Careless #TomorrowsPapersToday https://t.co/XDIrOz40Wl pic.twitter.com/TwfuSWlaKu
— The Mirror (@DailyMirror) September 7, 2021