Labour hints at plans to scrap tuition fees in election manifesto
Footage has emerged of John McDonnell telling supporters Labour will scrap tuition fees "once and for all" if it wins on 8 June.
Wednesday 10 May 2017 15:22, UK
Labour has hinted that plans to scrap or significantly reform university tuition fees will be included in the party's election manifesto.
Jeremy Corbyn has confirmed he is carrying "some stuff in my pocket" about tuition fees which will be unveiled next week, while shadow education secretary Angela Rayner urged voters to "watch this space".
Footage has also emerged of shadow chancellor John McDonnell telling supporters at a rally in Mansfield that Labour would abolish tuition fees "once and for all" if it wins the General Election.
In the video, recorded last month, Mr McDonnell says: "We believe, we've always believed as a movement, that education is a gift from one generation to another, it's not a commodity to be bought and sold."
Earlier on Wednesday, Labour announced plans to
Under its proposals to introduce a "national education service", Labour said:
:: All primary school children would receive free school meals
:: Class sizes for five to seven-year-olds would not be allowed to exceed 30 pupils
:: The educational maintenance allowance for college students, which was worth up to £30 a week in England before it was scrapped in 2010, would be restored
:: Maintenance grants for university students would be reinstated
:: Fees on courses for adult learners looking to retrain or improve skills would be scrapped
The plans would be funded using the £20bn it believes will be raised by increasing corporation tax from 19% to 26% over the course of the next parliament. Smaller firms with annual profits of less than £300,000 would see their corporation tax rates rise to 21%.
Although the Conservatives have accused Mr Corbyn of rowing back on a promise not to raise corporation tax for small businesses, the Labour leader described the proposed increase as "modest".
Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, disagreed - and claimed the corporation tax rises would be "one of the biggest increases in the last 30 years".
He also warned that such an increase could discourage investment from the business community, and have a detrimental impact on tax revenues in the longer term.
The Conservative chief secretary to the Treasury, David Gauke, added: "Jeremy Corbyn would drop a tax bombshell on every small business and working family in Britain to pay for his nonsensical policies."