What Labour promises to do if elected

Britain's Labour Party is projected to win Thursday's national election with a large majority, returning to power after 14 years in opposition.

Below are some of the party's main domestic policy plans, set out in its manifesto :

ECONOMY

Labour's first mission is sustained economic growth. The plan focuses on wealth creation and aims to be "pro-business and pro-worker," introducing a new industrial strategy to end short-term economic policy.

Labour intends to establish a National Wealth Fund, with £7.3 billion, aiming to attract £3 of private investment for every £1 of public money to support growth and clean energy.

There will be no return to austerity. The economic approach will be governed by fiscal rules requiring a balanced budget, with day-to-day costs met by revenues, and debt to be falling as a share of the economy by the fifth year of the forecast.

TAXES

Labour has pledged not to raise taxes "for working people," with no increase in the basic, higher, or additional rates of income tax, National Insurance, or VAT. Corporation tax will be capped at 25 per cent.

The party also plans to close loopholes that allow some wealthy individuals living in Britain to avoid paying tax.

HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE

Labour plans to reduce waiting times in the National Health Service by adding 40,000 more appointments every week. This includes incentivising staff for extra appointments out of hours, pooling resources across hospitals, and using private sector capacity.

It will double the number of diagnostic cancer scanners and train thousands more family doctors. Labour guarantees a face-to-face appointment for all who want one.

The party has pledged to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments and recruit new dentists to areas that need them most. It will also introduce a supervised tooth-brushing scheme for 3- to 5-year-olds.

DEFENCE

Labour plans to boost defence spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP. A Strategic Defence Review will be launched to assess threats and necessary capabilities.

The party will ensure a strong domestic defence sector and resilient supply chains, including steel, prioritising UK businesses for defence investment and reforming procurement.

IMMIGRATION

Labour has pledged to reduce net migration. It plans to reform Britain’s points-based immigration system by restricting visas and training workers where there are domestic shortages.

On illegal migration, Labour will scrap the current government's plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, focusing instead on stopping people-smuggling gangs and enhancing border security. Additional asylum caseworkers will be hired to clear the backlog of claims, and a new returns and enforcement unit will be set up to fast-track removals to safe countries.

CLIMATE AND ENERGY

Labour aims for clean power by 2030 by doubling onshore wind, tripling solar power, and quadrupling offshore wind. It will establish state-owned Great British Energy, backed by £8.3 billion, to co-invest in leading technologies and support capital-intensive projects.

Labour will maintain a strategic reserve of gas power stations to guarantee supply security and will not issue new licences for oil and gas fields in the North Sea.

The party plans to close loopholes in the windfall tax on oil and gas companies and extend the sunset clause in the Energy Profits Levy until the end of the next parliament. It will increase the levy rate by three percentage points and remove investment allowances.

Labour aims to ensure the long-term security of the nuclear power sector by extending the lifetime of existing plants and supporting new nuclear power stations and Small Modular Reactors.

EDUCATION

Labour plans to recruit 6,500 new teachers in key subjects and fund free breakfast clubs at every primary school. It will also expand childcare availability by opening 3,000 new nurseries based in primary schools.

The party has pledged to end tax exemptions for fee-paying schools to invest more in state-run schools.

CONSTITUTIONAL REFORMS

Labour will reduce the voting age to 16 from 18. Changes to parliament's upper chamber, the House of Lords, include removing the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote and introducing a mandatory retirement age.

Labour has committed to ultimately replacing the House of Lords with a second chamber that is "more representative of the regions and nations" of the UK.