Party Manifestos for the UK General Election 2024: Detailed Pledges and Plans

As the UK approaches the General Election on 4th July 2024, political parties have released their detailed manifestos to capture voter interest and share their vision for the future of Britain.

Here’s a comprehensive overview of the pledges made by the Conservative Party, the Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats, and the Green Party.

The Conservative Party’s Manifesto 2024

Key pledges:

• Housing initiatives: Revive the Help to Buy scheme, offering first-time buyers a 20% equity loan and permanently raising the stamp duty threshold to £425,000.
• Tax adjustments: Abolish National Insurance for the self-employed and reduce it for employees, while also increasing personal tax-free allowances for pensioners.
• Criminal justice reform: Propose tougher sentences for specific crimes and plan to build four new prisons to alleviate overcrowding.
• Asylum policy: Implement regular flights to Rwanda for asylum processing, despite legal and logistical challenges.
• Defence spending: Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2030, exceeding the current NATO target.
• Education and employment: End low-quality university degrees and fund 100,000 additional apprenticeships by the next Parliament.

You can read the full Conservative Party’s Manifesto 2024 here.

The Labour Party’s Manifesto 2024

Key pledges:

• Economic growth and stability: Introduce tough spending rules, cap corporation tax at 25%, and launch a National Wealth Fund to invest in future industries. Reform planning rules to support infrastructure development and delegate powers to local authorities for boosting local growth.
• Healthcare improvements: Reduce NHS waiting times by offering 40,000 more evening and weekend appointments weekly, recruit 8,500 new mental health staff, and increase the number of state-of-the-art MRI and CT scanners. Develop neighbourhood health centres to integrate various healthcare services under one roof.
• Energy and environment: Establish Great British Energy, a publicly-owned clean power company to drive the transition to renewable energy, aiming to make Britain a clean energy superpower by 2030. Implement stringent measures to stop water companies from polluting the environment.
• Education reforms: Recruit 6,500 new teachers, particularly in shortage subjects, and close tax loopholes for private schools to fund mental health support in schools. Reform Ofsted and enhance the curriculum to prepare students for future challenges.
• Crime and policing: Increase neighbourhood policing with 13,000 additional officers and PCSOs, introduce specialist units for domestic abuse and rape cases, and focus on preventing youth crime through a national network of youth hubs.
• Immigration and border security: Create a Border Security Command to tackle people-smuggling and clear the asylum backlog. Implement counter-terror style tactics to combat organised crime and reduce the use of hotels for asylum seekers.

You can read the full Labour Party’s Manifesto 2024 here.

The Liberal Democrats’ Manifesto 2024

Key pledges:

• Environment: Commitment to achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2045, with significant investments in renewable energy and green jobs, banning fracking, and establishing a £5 billion fund for flood prevention and climate adaptation. Implement stricter environmental regulations to protect biodiversity. 
• Healthcare: Invest heavily in the NHS to reduce waiting times. Give everyone the right to see a GP within seven days, or within 24 hours, with 8,000 more GPs to deliver on it. Boost cancer survival rates and introduce a guarantee for 100% of patients to start treatment within 62 days from urgent referral. Increase funding for mental health services, focusing on accessibility for all age groups.
• Economy and taxation: Key tax reforms would include reversing the bank surcharge levy cut from 5% to 3%, reforming Capital Gains Tax to raise £5 billion, and aggressively tackling tax avoidance and evasion to generate over £8 billion in revenue​​. These measures are designed to fund essential public services, such as healthcare and education. Also aim to reduce living costs by cutting energy bills, managing mortgage rates, and addressing food prices. Support small businesses and start-ups and create high-skilled jobs in technology and green sectors.
• International: Scrap the Rwanda scheme and “provide safe and legal routes” for asylum seekers. Pledge to re-join the Single Market, with a “longer term objective” of re-joining the EU. Rebuild the relationship with the EU by taking steps to change the UK’s approach to foreign policy cooperation. 
• Democratic Renewal: Push for proportional representation to ensure fairer voting and more representative parliamentary outcomes.

You can read the full Liberal Democrat Party’s Manifesto 2024 here.

The Green Party’s Manifesto 2024

Key pledges:

• Tax system overhaul: Implement significant personal tax changes expected to generate £50bn to £70bn annually, including a wealth tax for ultra-high net worth individuals.
• National Insurance: Increase the basic 8% rate on incomes above the upper earnings limit, impacting less than 5 million taxpayers.
• Social and public services: Invest £20bn in adult social care, including free personal care similar to Scotland, and oppose nuclear energy while promoting renewable energy sources. Nationalise the companies that run our railways, our water companies and the big five energy companies.
• Housing: Introduce rent controls, build 150,000 social homes a year in England and end Right to Buy. 
• Tackling Climate Change: Invest £100 billion annually to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, focusing on renewable energy and job creation in green industries. Ban domestic flights under three hours by train, aiming for a transition to a zero-carbon society ahead of 2040.
• Healthcare revolution: Boost NHS funding annually by increasing taxes on the wealthiest. A carbon tax would contribute to £150 billion a year to improve access to healthcare services, and invest in healthcare infrastructure.
• Democratic renewal: Introduce proportional representation, lower voting age to 16, and replace the House of Lords with an elected chamber.

You can read the full Green Party’s Manifesto 2024 here.

Stay informed and engaged

With each party presenting a vision for a better future, it’s important for voters to understand these pledges in detail. The upcoming election will have lasting impacts on various aspects of national life, from the economy and security to education and healthcare.

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