“Tax the wealthy” (RR budget) what does this even mean?

[gggddjkki]

I don’t remember anxiously waiting for budgets like we have the last few years earlier on in my adulthood. But when you read statements like this (as I have seen in the headlines today) what do you interpret it to mean? What does taxing the wealthy look like to you? Taxing higher earners more? From what point? Higher taxes on industry?

Maybe it’s taxing wealth and not income… not sure, but I feel similarly to you regarding nerves

She will go for anyone with a house valued over £500,000 I reckon.

Take from the workers and give to the shirkers.
Labour 2024-2029

Make it stop

The bottom line is that the Exchequer is up a creek; not enough cash to meet the expectations of the public.

Can close the gap by cutting spending, increasing the tax take or borrowing more.

Borrowing is close to the limit the market will bear and is becoming more expensive. Truss's experience tells us what happens if the bond markets won't lend or will only lend at price.

The rebellion on PIP stopped one course to reduce spending.

Whatever's cut will face similar opposition albeit perhaps with less risk of it being voted down in the house.

Taxes will have to rise.

I hope it's wealth, not income.

It’ll be wealth tax, not income. Hopefully large corporations who pay the least tax they can?

The IFS says the UK needs to cut benefits to regain credibility with the bond markets. The trouble is the Labour benches won't allow that.
Income tax rise will be what will have to happen. We all need to chip in not just the wealthy who bear a disproportionate burden already. It's a fine balance. One that Labour won't strike.

Make it stop indeed. The last budget was a one off tax hike according to Reeves and Starmer. Stick to that.

Businesses are not the bad guys - we need their investment and the jobs they create. Making the UK less attractive for business is just going to tank growth and increase unemployment - both of which are already weak on the back of the last budget.

Yes.
Caught between a rock and a hard place.

How though? Most run of the mill workers have nothing left to give!

I imagine they are going to hit high earners via income tax.

'hard working people' never includes anyone earning over £100k. Who seem to be the golden goose of this country.

It's a disgrace if they do but I wouldn't be surprised by anything Labour do.

I’d just tax all inheritance under the current million threshold at 10%, people would receive an inheritance that was materially the same as what they were expecting, and it would go a long way to plug the hole in the finances.

Yeh that’s not going to work. They should just admit they got it wrong and stop chasing taxes they said they wouldn’t hike.

Should tax cash prizes, even 10% of lottery, gambling, premium bond wins would be £3 to 4 billion.
I'd still be happy to win the lottery!

Fair point but they do need to pay their full share of untaxed wealth tho x

Valued by whom?

That's exactly the kind of thing this government won't think about - the consequences of their decisions and how they work in practice.

they need to make cuts, but they will never do that. The Conservatives didn't do it either.

reform of inheritance tax could be reasonable, but They'd literally have to announce "from this moment on, anyone who dies, their estate will be subject to..." and fix a time!

The sad thing is, they probably haven't considered that either.

They will mean anyone who isn't on their narrow list of "working people" ie select public sector workers. Everyone else (ie the majority) will be fair game (apart from those on benefits).

“An estimated 142,000 millionaires are set to relocate to a new country this year, with the UK set to lose a record 16,500 in the coming 12 months.” (Independent, June 2025).
If Rachel Reeves makes conditions too onerous for those with the most money (who are also the most mobile), then they will leave. Any colour of government should be worried about the fact that the top 1% of taxpayers contribute almost 30% of income tax, and the top 10% pay 60%. Get rid of them, and you have a very large fiscal hole to fill.

If you tax winnings, will people be allowed to offset losses?

I wonder if the people complaining about a tax rise are the same ones who are saying “as hard as it is, disabled people just have to accept they can’t get anything for free, we just can’t afford it”

Yes, it will be interesting to see where they draw the line but if she is using the term “wealthy” then at least we know she isn’t targeting poor and vulnerable people, which will make a nice change. I already pay more tax as a higher rate taxpayer, living in Scotland. I don’t notice the difference, even though I’m not what most people would consider as “wealthy”. I suspect those in a similar financial position to me would only complain about a rise in tax if A) they objected to it on principle or B) have a real issue about where money is being spent.

As far as I’m concerned, if it can help get us out of the mess we’re in, I’d rather they took the money off me, than off people like my disabled daughter.

The £500k house thing is ridiculous.

Is someone living here: https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/167706422#/?channel=RES_BUY rich?

It will disproportionately hit families who have bought in the last few years (who are already skint and can’t downsize), who are already fed up that house prices are insanely high.

Id love to have a family home under £500k, but find me one in London, close to good schools, with a garden and parking.

This is very difficult to track. But also, what were the figures for last year, last decade? Some Millionaires will gravitate to countries to hide their wealth. They always have. If someone isn’t invested enough in our nation, they are welcome to bugger off and live somewhere else. I find it funny that the current narrative is that we should send “home” a whole load of immigrants who, studies have clearly shown contribute well to the economy, but we’re supposed to be sad that millionaires, who do everything they can to avoid tax, are leaving the country.

Isn’t the better question, how come we have in excess of 142k millionaires and how are they making their money?

What ‘untaxed wealth’?

Corporations pay corporation tax at the rate according to the jurisdiction in which they are based. For Amazon, for example, in the UK, this is the RoI.

They then pay employer related taxes eg Income tax and NICS in the UK at whatever the prevailing rates are.

Being headquartered in the RoI keeps their corporation tax low because Ireland has decided, sensibly, to set their rate lower than ours, thereby attracting large corporates to base themselves there. Overall, the RoI may well make more corporation tax revenue than we do even though the rates are lower. This is something Labour are ideologically opposed to even though it makes economic sense.

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