Johnson sets out plans to lift 2 million workers out of National Insurance

More than 2 million low-paid workers are set to be lifted out of National Insurance under plans to be unveiled in the Tories’ General Election manifesto.

Boris Johnson said the manifesto would include a commitment to raise the threshold at which workers start paying National Insurance contributions (NICs) from £8,628 a year to £9,500 – eventually rising to £12,500.

The Prime Minister had initially appeared to blurt out the plan ahead of the manifesto launch – expected at the weekend – during a campaign visit to an engineering company in Teesside.

However, he later confirmed it to reporters following him on the campaign trail, saying it would put “around £500” in people’s pockets.

“We think this is the moment to help people with the cost of living and to do more to help people on low incomes with the cost of living, to put more money into their pockets,” he said.

The disclosure came as Tories came under fire for re-branding one of their official Twitter accounts as a fact-check service during Tuesday’s TV debate between Mr Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn.

The Liberal Democrats, meanwhile, launched their election manifesto with a promise of a £50 billion “Remain bonus” for public services if they succeed in their aim of stopping Brexit.