Lib Dems rule out taxing rich in effort to woo Tory voters

Ed Davey: ‘It’s a cost of living crisis – taxes on people have gone up hugely already.’ Photograph: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images

Ed Davey has ruled out the Liberal Democrats seeking tax rises on even the richest individuals amid continuing efforts by his party to target disaffected Conservative voters in dozens of “blue wall” seats.

A day before his speech to his party’s conference in Bournemouth, the Lib Dem leader also confirmed that the previous policy of adding 1p on to income tax to pay for better NHS services had been scrapped.