GMB: Ed Balls and Dominic Raab argue over windfall tax

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The former Labour Shadow Chancellor pointed out that Conservative Geoffrey Howe introduced a one-off windfall tax on certain bank deposits during a national crisis. A 20 percent tax on North Sea oil was also introduced. He said on ITV’s Good Morning Britain: “The Labour Government had a windfall tax in 1997, the Conservative Government had a windfall tax on the banks in 1981. That’s not a party political issue.

“It’s something you do when there’s been a big hike in prices and profits and you want to deliver something for consumers. Is it really such a bad idea?”

Mr Raab replied: “I think your political credentials are coming out.

“I think it’s a crazy idea. Is this a party political broadcast on behalf of the Labour party?”

Mr Balls interjected: “I think Geoffrey Howe was a Conservative Chancellor.

“A Conservative Chancellor decided to have a windfall tax on the banks.

“That’s not a Labour idea, it’s Conservative.”

Mr Raab continued: “Whenever a Labour Government has been in office, unemployment has finished higher than when it began.

“The handling of the economic crisis left us with sky-high unemployment and a massive deficit.”

Sophy Ridge has Labour's Reynolds squirming in North Sea probe

It comes a multi-billion pound deal in the North Sea could increase costs and reduce the quality of service for oil and gas producers, the competition regulator fears.

The £2.6 billion merger of Maersk Drilling and Noble could allow the firms to exercise too much control over the market, reduce competition and spark knock-on effects for households, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) warned.

A CMA probe found the offshore drilling contractors overlap in their supply of ‘jack-up’ rigs, a type of oil rig used in the North Sea.

The regulator said Maersk and Noble compete closely and face limited competition as two of the four biggest suppliers of offshore drilling.

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“Offshore drilling services are critical for oil and gas producers,” said Colin Raftery, the CMA’s senior director of mergers.

“We’re therefore concerned that the loss of competition that this deal would bring about could result in higher prices or lower quality services, increasing operating costs for oil and gas producers in the UK North Sea.”

The UK faces an energy crisis and four in 10 people in Britain could fall into fuel poverty in October, energy bosses warned this week.

At the start of April, regulator Ofgem increased the price cap by 54 percent as wholesale prices for energy suppliers soared.

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