The tax burden on families across the UK is soaring under Labour, Iain Duncan Smith has told the Commons.

The combination of increased council tax and higher national insurance would cost the average household £570-a-year, the opposition leader said.

Rounding on Tony Blair's "broken promises" he said there had been 53 different tax rises.

"People now know that instead of listening to what the prime minister says they should look at their wallets to see what they have to pay," he said.

Duncan Smith added that the average household council tax bill had risen by 42 per cent under Labour.

"Come April, council tax bills are set to rise by up to 10 times the rate of inflation - and this from a prime minister who promised 'we have no plans to increase tax at all'."

Blair said that national insurance rises were "a good deal" that would deliver more money for the health service.

"It does not mean that they are forced, as they would be under his proposals, either to deal with a health service which was under-funded or, as the Conservatives want, to force people out into the private medical insurance sector," he added.

Blair said that the tax burden for the coming year would be lower than it was under eight of the 11 years of the Thatcher administration.