UK Conservatives outline tax-cut and deregulation agenda ahead of election fight

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Conservatives tax-cut agenda

Highlights

Stride proposes benchmarking UK financial regulation to rivals like New York and easing City of London constraints to unlock private capital for housing and infrastructure.
He reviews transaction-based taxes including stamp duty and capital gains tax, expressing concerns about high employer national insurance thresholds from Rachel Reeves’ 2024 Budget.
Conservatives emphasize fiscal discipline and deregulation as key election dividing lines, with YouGov polling showing the party now most trusted on the economy despite low overall trust.

Stride sets out fiscal and regulatory agenda

As reported by Financial Times, Stride says the UK should benchmark its financial regulation against rival centres, especially New York, so that Britain does not become an outlier in the toughness of rules on banks and other institutions. He argues that easing constraints in the City of London in a safe and prudent way would help make the country more investable and unlock more private capital for housing and infrastructure.

Stride says he is examining tax changes that can support growth without materially damaging the tax take, drawing on ideas associated with economist Art Laffer. He identifies transaction-based taxes such as stamp duty and capital gains tax as areas where excessively high rates can reduce yields, and says he is also concerned about employers’ national insurance, including the lower threshold introduced in Rachel Reeves’ first Budget.

He also takes a hard line on fiscal discipline, criticising Reeves’ 2024 decision to use a debt measure that allows more borrowing for investment. Stride says he is reviewing all elements of the fiscal rules, including the year in which they apply, to ensure they send a strong signal to markets that the Conservative Party remains fiscally responsible.

Election dividing lines on growth and investment

Stride frames the debate as a major economic turning point, describing it as a moment comparable to the late 1970s and presenting Kemi Badenoch’s Conservatives as heirs to Margaret Thatcher’s mix of deregulation and later tax cuts. He calls his approach responsible radicalism, arguing that prolonged managerial incrementalism is not enough to improve the UK’s economic position.

This stance sharpens the contrast with Burnham, who is preparing to move into Number 10 promising to boost growth outside London, increase state investment in council housing and tighten public control over essential services as part of a push to reverse 40 years of neoliberalism. Stride says the Conservative alternative is to remove barriers to private investment while keeping a firm grip on the deficit.

YouGov polling, cited in the report, shows the Conservatives are now the most trusted party on the economy, although trust remains at a low level after the fallout from Liz Truss’s 2022 Budget. That improves the terrain for Badenoch as the party tries to make economic credibility, tax policy and regulation central issues in the next election.

Our previous report on the UK’s rising disability benefits bill explained how surging personal independence payment (PIP) claims—particularly for mental health conditions—are adding to long-term pressure on public spending. We noted warnings that reform may be needed to keep welfare costs sustainable, making disability benefits a sensitive but increasingly central item on the fiscal agenda for any incoming government.

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