New announcement on exempting minimum-wage workers from income tax is hinted at by message intended for George Osborne’s aide, seen by the Guardian

The Conservatives appear to be drawing up plans to steal the thunder of their opponents by outflanking Labour and the Liberal Democrats over plans to exempt workers on the minimum wage from paying income tax.

A text intended for a senior aide to George Osborne, which has been passed to the Guardian, suggests the Tories are planning to make a fresh announcement on the minimum wage and tax in their manifesto due to be launched on Tuesday.

The text was sent by a No 10 aide on Sunday afternoon as the Tories made preparations for the launch of the Labour manifesto in Manchester. Ed Miliband pledged at the manifesto launch to accelerate a rise in the minimum wage to ensure it stands at £8 an hour by time of the 2020 election.

David Cameron pledged in his speech to the Conservative party conference last year to raise the tax-free personal allowance to £12,500 in the next parliament. This would ensure that anyone working a minimum of 30 hours a week on the minimum wage would be exempt from paying income tax.

Compare the parties’ pledges by clicking on their names Compare the parties’ pledges by clicking on their names

The text from a Downing Street aide to Neil O’Brien, the former head of the Policy Exchange thinktank and a senior adviser to the chancellor, suggests the Tories are thinking of developing the policy. The text said: “Hi Neil. Have sent you the tax free min wage press notice draft. Rupert asks if you could print for George in no11?” Rupert refers to Rupert Harrison, the chancellor’s most senior economic adviser.

The Tories could outflank their opponents by saying that every time the minimum wage rises, recipients would not pay tax. The minimum wage was increased from £6.31 an hour for an adult to £6.50 last October. The Tories have pledged to raise it to £8 an hour by 2020.

Danny Alexander, the Liberal Democrat chief secretary to the Treasury, said the text suggested the Tories were planning to make another unfunded spending commitment. Alexander told the Guardian: “The day before the Tories launch their manifesto, their so-called long-term economic plan is long gone. George Osborne’s spending plans are becoming less and less credible by the day, and it’s embarrassing.

“They now expect the public to believe them when they make unfunded promises with one hand, whilst decimating family budgets and public services with the other. The Tories will take £1,500 directly out of the pockets of 8m households to fund regressive plans for £12bn in welfare cuts and refuse to tell the British public where these cuts will fall, or how they will pay for policies they are seemingly making up as they go along.”



