Tories will lose the next General Election if Boris Johnson breaks tax pledge, Jacob Rees-Mogg warns

BORIS Johnson has been warned by one of his own Cabinet ministers that he faces losing the next election if he hikes any of the three main taxes. 

Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg warned there would be “consequences” if the PM breaks his election-winning manifesto not to raise income tax, VAT or National Insurance.

In a clear warning to Mr Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Mr Rees-Mogg said “no sensible party or government ever breaks manifesto commitments willy nilly”.

He said breaking election promises would require “extraordinary circumstances” and public consent.

And he warned there would be “consequences” if the Tories broke its triple tax pledge.

The Commons leader cited the example of George Bush Sr who lost the 1992 US election after declaring: “Read my lips: no new taxes.” 

And speaking on his fortnightly podcast Mr Rees-Mogg used the example to point out there were “consequences” to breaking election promises.

Mr Rees-Mogg told The Moggcast podcast: “And then when it came to the Gulf War and the economic downturn, he broke his promise and he lost the ensuing election.

“No sensible party or government ever breaks manifesto commitments willy nilly: it needs extraordinary circumstances and it also needs public consent.”

The Tory manifesto, which won Mr Johnson a historic landslide in last year’s General Election, promised a triple tax pledge not to raise income tax, VAT or National Insurance.

But the Chancellor Rishi Sunak has repeatedly refused to rule out breaking the pledge in order to pay for Britain’s huge Covid bill.

Government borrowing is expected to hit almost £400 billion for this year alone, with government Covid spending totalling around £280 billion.

Mr Sunak has warned that the Government faces some “difficult” decisions in the coming years over how it repays the bill.