Money policies from this week on the election trail

Conservatives

Following Tuesday night’s election debate, the Tories announced they would reduce the number of visas available to migrants, if they’re re-elected. PM Rishi Sunak says this will tackle the flow of migrants, but critics worry this could put more pressure on the NHS and that training new British health workers to replace migrants could come at a cost to taxpayers.

Friday, the Conservatives unveiled plans to double the income at which people start to lose child benefit – from £60,000 to £120,000.

And Chancellor Jeremy Hunt pledged property taxes wouldn’t be increased under a Tory government, as part of a Family Home Tax Guarantee. He promised the party would maintain private residence relief, which protects main homes from capital gains tax, and wouldn’t increase the number of council tax bands, or cut council tax discounts. The rate and level of stamp duty, a tax paid when a property over a certain price is purchased, would also stay the same.

Labour

The Labour Party has outlined its plan to “get Britain working”, setting out how it would create economic stability. This includes a new jobs and careers offering made up of jobcentreplus and the careers service to tackle unemployment, and local support plans to get more people with health conditions and disabilities into work.

The party also wants to introduce a “youth guarantee”, delivering training and apprenticeships for all 18-21 year olds.

On top of this, Labour said it would make the mortgage guarantee scheme – introduced by Rishi Sunak in 2021 – permanent.  The party says it will help more than 80,000 young people get on the property ladder by cementing the initiative, which offers low-deposit mortgages for first-time homebuyers.

The Scottish Labour Party also set out its cost-of-living plans. Among his promises, Leader Anas Sarwar said his party would cut energy bills, boost pay, and create jobs and opportunities, including 69,000 clean energy roles in Scotland.

Liberal Democrats

This week, the Lib Dems pledged they would implement free personal care for elderly and disabled adults if they are elected. A carer for his disabled son and ill mother, Party Leader Ed Davey said the care crisis was “deeply personal” for him.

The Lib Dems also want to give free school meals to all primary school children, starting by extending them to the 900,000 pupils living in poverty who don’t currently get them. Once public finances have stabilised, they plan to offer school meals to all primary children for free.

Green Party

The Greens have proposed a five-year £50-billion plan to improve health and social care by 2030, saying they would also fight NHS privatisation. The party would allocate £30 billion to increasing health worker salaries and improving access to GPs and dentists, while the remaining £20 billion would go toward the social care system.

The plan would be funded by increasing taxes on the rich, the party say.

The Scottish Greens announced they would introduce Universal Basic Income across Scotland and the UK, giving everyone a guaranteed income. Co-leader Lorna Slater says this would help tackle poverty and inequality.

Scottish National Party

The SNP said it would introduce a bill to protect the NHS from privatisation. The Keep the NHS in Public Hands Bill would be introduced in the party’s first 100 days in power.

Stay up to date

Keep checking back for all the latest campaign updates which could affect your money situation.