Tax cut proposals for family homes and youth employment

At the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham on Wednesday, leader Kemi Badenoch pledged to abolish inheritance tax on family homes if her party wins power. Under her plan, couples could pass on an additional £1 million without paying the levy, with an eventual goal of eliminating the tax completely when public finances allow. The levy currently stands at 40% on estates valued over £325,000, rising to £500,000 when passed to direct descendants, and affects roughly 5% of estates. Research by the House of Commons projects that inheritance tax will raise about £14.7 billion by 2030/2031 due to rising property values. Badenoch also proposed cutting employer National Insurance social security contributions from the current rate of 15% to 7.5% for 21- to 24-year-olds to help them find work. She framed her economic vision as a direct alternative to higher state spending.

“I believe the people who work hard and save should be rewarded for that effort.”

Current rate15%

Proposed rate7.5%

Current rate

15 %

Proposed rate

7.5 %

Data from the article text

Attacks on Labour economic management

Badenoch contrasted her tax platform with the state-directed economic plans of Prime Minister Andy Burnham's Labour Party. She accused Burnham of wanting to spend money the country does not have on things it cannot afford, asserting that his policies would make Britain poorer. The Conservative leader targeted Labour's governing record and pointed to the rapid exit of its previous leadership from the parliamentary benches.

“Last year he was talking about being in power for a decade. Now he's not even an MP. Life comes at you pretty fast.”

Her address described the upcoming general election as a battle for the soul of the nation, arguing that families must retain more of their earnings rather than funding government programs.

Rejection of electoral pacts with Reform UK

Badenoch firmly rejected calls to unite the right and ruled out any electoral deal with Reform UK. She poked fun at former cabinet ministers Robert Jenrick and Suella Braverman, describing their departures as an export boom of drama queens to Reform. In a personal appeal, she criticized Reform MPs for questioning whether black players on the England football team are truly English. Badenoch stated she would prefer another election over sharing power with a party mired in sleaze.

“Character, conduct, and standards matter.”

She urged the British public not to let political opponents pull the country backwards on questions of identity and citizenship.

Polling headwinds and party rebuilding

Despite her reception at the conference hall, the Conservative Party remains third in opinion polls behind Labour and Reform UK. Party support sits below 20%, trailing the result from its 2024 general election defeat. Recent Survation polling showed that 42% of people think Badenoch is doing a good job as leader, compared to 33% who think she is doing badly. Badenoch admitted to delegates that substantial work remains to rebuild public trust after years of political instability following the 2016 European Union exit vote.

“People are looking through the shop window, they like what they see, but not enough of them are buying yet.”

Doing good job42%

Doing badly33%

Doing good job

42 %

Doing badly

33 %

Data from the article text

Her speech stressed the challenge of turning positive public interest into actual votes as the party seeks to recover its traditional voter base.