article: The party said extending the way shares were taxed and closing a loophole would bring in up to £26bn in the next Parliament, if it won the election. It is also wants a tax avoidance crackdown and would require £1m+ earners to publish their tax records. The Conservatives described Labour's plans as "a total shambles". Meanwhile, the Tories are promising a "new generation" of social housing will be built in England if they win the general election. And the Lib Dems are proposing a cash incentive to engineering and technology graduates who sign up for the armed forces. Party leader Tim Farron said the £10,000 "golden handshake" - paid to recruits committing for five years - would help address a "critical skills shortfall" in the services. Labour has been facing calls to say how it would pay for a series of election pledges after its draft manifesto was leaked last week. It says the final version, which has yet to be published, will be fully costed. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell said Labour's plans to increase taxes on City transactions would be a "Robin Hood tax" that would "make the financial sector pay its fair share" after the damage caused by the financial crisis. Labour said it would extend the existing 0.5% stamp duty paid on shares to other financial assets, including investments known as derivatives. It would also end an exemption, known as intermediaries relief, that applies to some banks and hedge funds, saying that together the measures would bring in between £4.7bn and £5.6bn a year. Mr McDonnell added: "Ordinary people are still being made to pay by the Tories for a crisis they didn't cause through the worst spending cuts for generations." A Robin Hood tax isn't a new idea, far from it. John McDonnell has long campaigned for it. The other name for it is a financial transactions tax, where a small levy is placed on certain financial transactions or trades. Here in the UK, we already pay stamp duty when shares are bought and traded. Last year that raised just over £3bn. Labour wants to go further and extend the levy to bonds and more complex financial instruments called derivatives, which it claims would raise £26bn over the course of the next Parliament, and help curb speculative computer-driven high frequency trading. Labour says the plan mirrors a similar one being planned by the EU, but Europe's scheme is currently in the long grass. The UK ruled out taking part, fearing it would hurt the City of London, where huge amounts of these trades are done. If Labour's plans came to fruition, critics say these transactions would simply move elsewhere or the costs would be passed on to the likes of pensions funds, ultimately hitting consumers. That's on top of worries over the potential loss of business and jobs in the City because of Brexit. Mr McDonnell also said Labour would ensure "fairness" in the UK's tax system with a string of tax-avoidance measures. These include increasing the number of people investigating the tax affairs of the wealthiest individuals,
summary: Labour says it would raise billions of pounds for public services with a new tax on financial transactions - known as a "Robin Hood" tax.