Three of the four candidates standing for the Labour leadership have effectively dismissed any possibility of reintroducing mansion tax if they go on to win power in the party and the country.
Yvette Cooper - wife of former Labour shadow Chancellor Ed Balls, himself a strong supporter of the tax before the May election - told Andrew Neil in a leadership hustings programme on BBC One that the tax was correct “in principle” although may need a change of emphasis and thresholds.
All three others were more dismissive of a re-run of the tax debate, which dogged Labour in the build-up to the election.
Andy Burnham - who famously made a spirited defence of mansion tax on BBC Radio during the last Labour party conference, despite seemingly being unaware how it would be implemented - now describes the idea as “spiteful” and “toxic.”
The two other Labour hopefuls, Jeremy Corbyn and Liz Kendall - despite being on opposite wings of the party - suggested on the TV hustings debate that they would back a radical overhaul of council tax bands to more effectively target high-value homes.
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Can't say this is surprising. No one wants to be associated with Eds Miliband and Balls now do they?
I think Cooper, no matter what she does, will always be associated with Balls. Unless she divorces him! She will forever be tainted by her association with him, which is unfair, but that's the hard old world of politics.
Typical from Burnham - he's always very quick to change his tune. Have some conviction, man! Let's hope Corbyn wins, that way we might get some genuine opposition rather than career politicians that are barely distinguishable from the Tories.
As for the mansion tax, I don't think it should be dismissed out of hand. The idea behind it is right and proper, but there might be too many difficulties over implementing it. A radical overhaul of council-tax bands is perhaps a less divisive and more sensible approach.
Finally, Labour realising how regressive and toxic this tax is. A few months too late, though.
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