Labour climbdown over tax raid as fight for votes begins

LABOUR was forced to climb down over its plans for a tax raid on holiday homes on the opening day of the General Election campaign yesterday, as David Cameron rushed to Yorkshire to fight for key votes.

Just hours after Prime Minister Gordon Brown confirmed the election would be held on May 6 and as Tory leader Mr Cameron addressed a rally in Leeds, the Tories claimed they had forced the Government to scrap three "damaging" tax measures.

Plans to scrap tax breaks for people who let out holiday homes – which would raise the Treasury just 20m but threatened to cost the tourism industry 200m a year and 4,500 job losses – have been put on hold, marking victory for the Yorkshire Post Give Tourism a Break campaign.

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A 10 per cent rise in cider duty and plans to charge landline users 6 a year to pay for the rollout of broadband will also be ditched. The Tories forced their removal from the Finance Bill – containing measures outlined in the Budget – in negotiations over which legislation will proceed in the days before Parliament is dissolved next Monday.

The tax changes came into force on April 1, but will now only remain in place after June 30 if Labour wins the election and a passes a new Finance Bill.

"This is a major victory for businesses and consumers across Britain," said Tory Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Philip Hammond.

A spokesman for the Tourism Alliance said of the holiday homes measure: "This will protect jobs and services in rural communities and take advantage of the renewed desire of Britons to holiday at home.

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"The industry can now plan for the future and deliver the jobs and economic growth needed to help pull the country out of recession."

News of the Government climbdown came as Mr Cameron called on Yorkshire's "great ignored" to vote him into Downing Street in an election heralded as "the most important for a generation".

Mr Cameron issued a rallying cry to hundreds of party activists at Leeds City Museum, saying voting for the Tories was "voting for hope, voting for optimism, voting for change".

Having chosen to head to Yorkshire, where the party is eyeing up 17 seats where a swing of less than 10 per cent is needed to win, the Tory leader called on candidates to speak up and fight for what he called the great ignored – "the hardworking decent people of this country".

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The Tories last night also claimed the backing of three more business leaders – Nick Robertson of Asos.com, Bob Wigley of Sovereign Reversions and Tim Steiner of Ocado – for their plans to limit Labour's National Insurance increase.

The heavyweight figures are the latest to back moves to curb the NI increases, described last week as a "tax on jobs", including former Trade Minister Lord Digby Jones, Sir Stuart Rose of Marks & Spencer, easyJet founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, and GlaxoSmithKline chairman Sir Christopher Gent.

The election race began earlier as Mr Brown made the expected announcement that the country will go to the polls on May 6, sparking a dash for the regions by the party leaders.

The Prime Minister travelled to Kent and appealed for a "clear and straightforward mandate" from the British people to secure a historic fourth Labour term in office.

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Mr Cameron addressed activists in London and stopped off at a hospital in Birmingham to stress the priority he gives to the NHS before being met by cheers and applause from the crowd of supporters, young Conservatives, councillors and prospective Parliamentary candidates in Leeds.

Calling on his party to remember "the people who grow our food, police our streets, pay their taxes and obey the law" he insisted voters do have a choice at the election.

"It is great to be in Leeds, in West Yorkshire, one of the parts of the country where this election will be determined," he said. "We all know that this country is crying out for change – they need to be inspired. We have got to earn their support, show that we are worthy and worth their vote."

The party particularly needs to make gains in constituencies like Selby and Ainsty, Calder Valley, Colne Valley, York Outer and Cleethorpes to claim victory but the most recent opinion polls have given the Tories a lead of between four and 10 per cent.

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A day of traditional Downing Street drama began at 9am with a weekly Cabinet meeting in Number 10 before Mr Brown was whisked away in a police motorcade to Buckingham Palace to ask the Queen for Parliament to be dissolved on Monday.

After confirming the election date, he made the first attack of the campaign, saying: "Over the next few weeks I will go round the country – the length and breadth of our land – and I will take to the people a very straightforward and clear message: Britain is on the road to recovery and nothing we do should put that recovery at risk."

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, MP for Sheffield Hallam, addressed party officials at their Westminster headquarters before heading to Watford to campaign.

Candidates across the region launched their personal campaigns and Sayeeda Warsi, Shadow Minister for Community Cohesion and Social Action, visited the key Tory target seats of Selby and Ainsty, Harrogate and Knaresborough, and York Outer.