No tax rises for two years - Brown

GORDON Brown yesterday ruled out more tax rises before the next election. With public fury over tax threatening to engulf Labour, the Chancellor put the brake on increases for the next two years.

He told the Confederation of British Industry he would not fall into the trap of countries which 'find themselves in the perverse position of cutting, spending or raising taxes at the wrong time of the economic cycle, putting growth and stability at risk'.

It was precisely at this point in the economic cycle that past British governments had made mistakes, he declared. Treasury officials confirmed that the Chancellor's speech had ruled out more increases.

'The message is that there are not going to be major cuts in spending, or tax rises,' explained one aide.

Mr Brown's remarks - just weeks before his pre-Budget report - exposed Labour fears of a voters' backlash at the next election over the spiralling tax burden.

Tory leader Michael Howard, who spoke to the CBI conference in Birmingham before the Chancellor, declared that the 60 tax rises Labour had already imposed were a 'slow-acting poison on the economy which was working its way through the system and would do real damage for years to come'.

In his first major set-piece speech since becoming leader, he attacked Mr Brown's record of 'piling more and more taxes on families and business'.

Mr Howard went on: 'Because the Government refuses to introduce reform to our public services, its only answer is higher tax When that fails, it can only turn to higher taxes still. It keeps coming back to the taxpayer for more and more money in an increasingly desperate attempt to deliver results. It is locked in a vicious circle of ever higher taxes and ever failing public services.'

In his speech the Chancellor backed the Bank of England's recent decision to put up interest rates. He made clear he would support future rises to tackle inflation, saying the bank was 'right to take the forwardlooking approach of preemptive action.'

Mr Brown's comments came days after it emerged that the council tax is expected to rise by nearly three times the rate of inflation next year - the seventh inflation-breaching increase in a row.