The rich should be rewarded with tax benefits to revive Victorian-era philanthropy and encourage charitable giving in Britain, says Hazel Blears, the Labour party chairman.

In an interview with the Financial Times, Ms Blears, widely seen as the Blairite candidate in the contest to replace John Prescott as Labour’s deputy leader, angrily hit out at what she said were calls for “punitive levels of taxation” from some of her rivals.