The Liberal Democrats caused a storm today by accidentally leaking what appeared to be a plan to raise taxes for everyone earning more than £50,000.
The proposal was in an email meant for Lib-Dem MPs but was mistakenly sent to dozens of political journalists.
It said the party was “looking at how the richest 10 per cent of people, those earning over £50,000, could make a further contribution”.
It went on: “The vast majority of people in the country would consider £50,000 a very large salary.”
The party’s high command was desperately back-peddling today, with one source branding it a “copper-bottomed cock up”.
The 3,500-word email was entitled Conference Top Lines Briefing and was marked at the top “not for forward distribution”.
However, it was copied to every journalist at the party’s conference in Glasgow just after 11am. The key passage in the email read: “In these difficult times, it is important that everyone makes their contribution. It is right that we ask the broadest shoulders to bear their fair share.”
It also suggested the party could increase capital gains tax, continuing: “Taxing capital gains at a lower rate than income... allows some of the wealthiest individuals to pay significantly less tax.” Just hours after it was sent, officials insisted it was all a blunder and claimed an aide had inserted the lines about a £50,000 target by mistake.
One senior party source told the Standard: “It is a complete mistake, it does not reflect what the party is thinking.” The source added there was no policy that would tax people earning more than £50,000 more heavily.
Another source close to Mr Clegg claimed the figure had been “copied and pasted” from a year-old briefing by a press officer.
The spokesman said investigations had failed to identify precisely how the blunder happened. It was claimed that the official who wrote the document that today’s email was based on had recently left the party’s employment.
