Nick Ferrari: Welcome to the show, model-kurimizumi. It’s good to have you here.

Kuri: Thank you Nick, it’s always good to talk on LBC.

Nick: So to start with, you’ve obviously spent a term in Government, but people are still feeling the pinch of the cost of living crisis. Why?

Kuri: Thanks, that’s a really good question. Obviously we spent the term in coalition with the Conservatives. We didn’t achieve everything we would’ve liked to have done because coalitions entail compromise. But we did achieve a lot. We invested more into energy, particularly renewables and nuclear, which will help increase our energy security. That’ll make us less dependent on gas imports which is not only good for the environment, but also will help reduce spikes in energy prices as a result of global events — protecting us from steep increases in the cost of living. We also introduced other forms of help, including the Mortgage Application Rights Act which aims to reduce the upfront cost of buying a house by making fees transparent and more competitive.

Nick: In the term you cut the highest rate of Corporation Tax, how can you square that with your desire to help people through the crisis?

Kuri: The different rate of Corporation Tax blocked the growth of the economy. Businesses were incentivised to not grow beyond the threshold where they would start paying the higher rate of Corporation Tax. So yes, we did consolidate Corporation Tax into one rate. But we did that to create a long-term, stable economy that protects jobs. One that makes us more resilient as a country to future economic shocks. We don’t plan to reverse this decision. Other parties might not be honest, but we are when we say that consolidating Corporation Tax is a win for everyone.

Nick: You mentioned that you didn’t achieve everything you’d have liked to do. So what would you have done if you were able to do so?

Kuri: Multiple things. First, we want to pay everyone a basic income, which means that you have an immediate safety net no matter what happens to you in your life. UBI is an effective way of ensuring people can lead stress-free lives and is the best long-term route to getting those people that can work back into work. The-

Nick: Sorry, but your coalition partners, the Conservatives, want to abolish Basic Income? How come they are saying one thing and you’re saying another?

Kuri: Well, of course, we are at the end of the term now. Naturally the Conservative Party will have their own policies that they are campaigning on. We are absolutely clear that scrapping Basic Income will be a policy that disproportionately affects those who need it most. And we will not support any government that has it as their policy.

Nick: Sorry, let me get this right. You’ll refuse to go into government with the Conservatives if they don’t back down from the policy?

Kuri: Absolutely. That’s my promise to voters.

Nick: That’s not the only policy that you are drastically different on. Is it right to say that housing is an area that you don’t see eye to eye on either?

Kuri: In this election, no. The Tories want to prevent building on any greenfield land. While encouraging building on brownfield sites is a good thing, we shouldn’t outright ban greenfield development. That’s a recipe for disaster. House prices will soar, and the cost of living crisis will just be exacerbated further. Labour’s plan is simple: we need to reform greenbelt legislation. It was always designed to prevent house building, not protect the environment. So-

Nick: The Lib Dems claim that you’ll let green spaces disappear.

Kuri: No. That’s taking the first bit of the policy without mentioning the second. We can’t remove greenbelt legislation without replacing it with something else. We’ll introduce targeted environmental measures to protect places like parks, sites of special scientific interest, and other areas that should be protected. But at the edge of cities like Birmingham and London are often communities that are crying out for more houses. The overzealous restrictions simply price people out of their communities and they are forced to move. So it is vital that we take a more balanced approach that actually aims to protect the environment. We don’t have enough houses, and it’s time we changed that.

Kuri: Returning back to the point earlier about the cost of living crisis — Labour are also committed to introducing social tariffs that will help those on the lowest incomes afford the essentials, such as gas and electr-

Nick: I’m afraid I have to stop you there Kuri — we’re out of time today. But thank you for coming on the show today and talking with me.

Kuri: Thank you, Nick. I look forward to maybe being on Call the Cabinet or Call Kuri soon!