The Conservatives are no longer the party of low taxation, as ministers deny that they are on a “warpath with business”.
A study by YouGov has found that the electorate believes the Tories are more likely to increase taxes than Labour.
The prime minister criticised Labour’s economic record this week, saying that Sir Keir Starmer wanted to tax the rich “till the pips squeak”. But the poll shows that 64% of people thought that a Tory government would raise taxes, while 56% thought a Labour government would.
In total, 54% of those surveyed said that the government was managing the economy badly, compared with 34% with the opposite view.
