Johnson denies rift with Miliband over tax

Mr Johnson insisted there was no disagreement between them over the 50p top rate of income tax, even though the Labour leader has said he wants to keep it permanently while Mr Johnson said it could go.

"What me and Ed agree on is that we need a 50p tax rate now, we will need it at the next General Election, but we will look at it closer to the time," he said. "I would like to reduce taxes. The priority would be to reduce taxes for people on lower incomes."

However, Conservative Party deputy chairman Michael Fallon said Mr Johnson's comments showed that Labour remained split on a key plank of economic policy.

"Once again we have the extraordinary and damaging spectacle of the leader of the Opposition and his Shadow Chancellor at loggerheads," he said.

Mr Johnson backed recently announced moves to overhaul Labour's leadership election process but said he wanted to retain links with the trade unions, and following Mr Miliband's launch on Saturday of a full-scale policy review, Mr Johnson said it was important that the party consulted as widely as possible.

And he dismissed claims Mr Miliband had struggled to make an impact since becoming party leader in September.

"The reason why there are these attacks on Ed from our political enemies is they are getting worried about him," Mr Johnson said. "And they should be as well, because in many senses they were underestimating the steel in Ed."