Former cabinet minister Louise Haigh has called for the upcoming spending review to serve as an 'economic reset', advocating for a bold wealth tax and higher public investment. Speaking at a Compass thinktank event in London, Haigh stressed the need to overhaul tax rules that she claims favour the wealthy at the expense of working people.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham echoed these sentiments, urging Labour to re-establish itself as the party of working-class ambition. He called for mayors to be empowered to build on public land and set targets for social housing construction to outpace the loss of existing homes.
Haigh, who resigned from government in November after a fraud conviction over a missing work phone, described the recent local election results as a 'warning' to Labour. She argued that the current tax system 'punishes earned income but barely touches the sides of the real driver of inequality – wealth'.
Burnham highlighted the threat from Reform UK and urged Labour to focus on housing and education. He criticised the Thatcher-era right-to-buy policy for 'shattering the foundations' of working-class families and called for a new generation of council homes akin to postwar efforts.
The event also featured former Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford and Labour MPs Rachael Maskell and Simon Opher, alongside junior energy minister Miatta Fahnbulleh.
