Lee Anderson slams Rachel Reeves (Image: PA)
As we approach the Spring Statement, I’m going to tell you something Rachel Reeves doesn’t want you to hear: her government is turning Britain into a criminal’s paradise. High streets up and down the country are becoming fronts for organised crime. Through the inexplicable rise of hundreds of vape shops, barbers and American candy stores, money laundering, illegal goods and even human trafficking have become commonplace under this government.
Let me give you the facts. One in two cigarettes smoked in Britain now are from the black market. They’ve paid zero tax. The Treasury lost £3.15 billion in tax revenue from illicit tobacco in 2024 alone. When Labour hiked tobacco duty last October, what happened? The OBR reported a £2.6 billion black hole in tax revenue, despite smoking rates down just 2.88 percent. Where did that money go? Straight into criminals’ pockets.
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But Rachel Thieves hasn’t learned her lesson. Her tax policies have created Black Market Britain, with 9% of UK adults now participating in the hidden economy compared to just 5% in 2015/16. One in 12 gamblers now use black market sites, staking £2.7 billion annually on illegal platforms.
This government promised to ‘smash the gangs’, in reality they are effectively funding a different kind of gang. Here’s the brutal truth: when you tax something too much, you don’t eliminate it – you push it underground. You hand opportunity to criminals on a silver platter. You destroy honest businesses – the pubs, the bookies, the corner shops – while rewarding those who don’t play by the rules.
And the damage is plain to see on every high street in Britain. Last year, targeted raids on mini-marts, vape shops, barbers and takeaways saw more than 920 people arrested. But this is just the tip of the iceberg. The National Crime Agency estimates at least £12 billion of criminal cash is generated in the UK each year – smuggled out of the country or pumped straight back into more organised crime.
Criminality has become commonplace under this government. A record 530,643 shoplifting offences last year – up 20 percent. Convenience stores recorded 6.2 million incidents. Over 1.2 million incidents of verbal abuse against shop workers. These aren’t abstract statistics – they’re the daily reality for honest businesses trying to survive while criminals thrive.
And yet, what is this government’s answer? More restrictions. More red tape. More ideology dressed up as policy. Their Tobacco and Vapes Bill would even give ministers the power to restrict the sale of cigarette filters – yes, cigarette filters – because apparently that’s what passes for serious governance these days. Student politics leading Britain to ruin, while the criminals laugh all the way to the bank.
And what has Labour actually done to support working people and businesses on the high street? Hiked employers’ national insurance from 13.8 percent to 15 percent. Forced through massive minimum-wage increases small businesses can’t afford. Raised vehicle excise duty. Slashed winter fuel payments for pensioners. Every single policy is designed to make life harder for the average person, while they incentivise crime to flourish with their tax policies.
As we head into the Spring Statement, I’m calling on this government to wake up. Your punitive tax policies aren’t raising revenue – they’re handing our high streets to organised crime. Stop driving honest businesses underground while criminals fill the void.
Because right now, the Chancellor isn’t just failing to raise revenue – she’s effectively funding criminal enterprises while killing off the pubs, bookies and corner shops that make our communities what they are. That’s not just bad economics. That’s a betrayal of every law-abiding citizen in this country.