Rayner scandal piles pressure on HMRC as tax surveillance force swells September 9, 2025 HMRC has increased the number of staff trained to physically monitor suspected tax evaders, as pressure mounts over Angela Rayner’s £40,000 stamp duty scandal. Official figures, obtained via Freedom of Information (FOI) and shared with City AM, show that 337 staff are now trained in covert surveillance, up from 171 people two years ago, in [...]
Thousands face fines after HMRC misses CGT update August 29, 2025 Tax experts have warned that “tens of thousands” of people could fall foul of penalties this year after tech issues left HMRC’s online filing system unable to properly reflect the recent changes to capital gains tax as implemented in Rachel Reeves’ first budget last year. The chancellor’s Autumn Budget increased CGT rates on disposals of [...]
Torsten Bell: Who is the mastermind behind the 2025 Autumn Budget? August 28, 2025 When parliamentary candidates were revealed ahead of last year’s elections, Torsten Bell was one of the better-known names on Labour’s list. With his glaringly wonkish CV and swaggering way of talking up esoteric economic policies, he seemed primed to one day leave his mark on a Budget. According to the New Statesman, his opportunity to [...]
Week in Business: Will Reeves Launch a Massive Tax Raid on Property and Pensions? August 21, 2025 Christian May interrupts your holiday with grim news on another punishing round of tax hikes coming in the Autumn.
Rachel Reeves considers ‘mansion tax’ on homes above £1.5m August 20, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves is looking at imposing capital gains tax on the sale of houses above £1.5m as she looks to fill a £40bn hole in the public finances. The change, which would likely happen at this year’s Autumn Budget, would see higher-rate taxpayers pay 24 per cent of the value of any gain they [...]
Rachel Reeves told to ‘get out of the way’ ahead of Autumn Budget August 13, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been told to “let businesses get on with it and get out of the way” ahead of delivering her second Autumn Budget in the coming months. A group of 1,500 private business leaders surveyed by KPMG said the Chancellor should focus on promoting higher wages and lower costs for companies. They [...]
Labour urged to come clean on exit tax August 5, 2025 Labour ministers have been urged to clarify whether the government will introduce an exit tax as Tax Policy Associates chief Dan Neidle warned rumours could be “damaging” for the UK economy. Chancellor Rachel Reeves looks poised to raise more than £20bn in taxes later this year amid a shortfall in the fiscal headroom left by [...]
Investors continue to opt for gold driving global demand July 31, 2025 Global demand for gold shows no sign of slowing down as investors and central banks continue to hoover up the safe haven asset. The precious metal rallied over the first half of the year, recording a 26 per cent rise against the dollar and outperforming almost all other major asset classes, according to the latest [...]
Costly departures: Why an exit tax looks more likely than a wealth tax July 22, 2025 Tax experts have been queuing up to warn that a blanket tax on wealth is both unlikely and unfeasible. But as ministers insist the government will avoid tax hikes targeting average earners, could it turn to an exit tax to plug the gap? As reams of impressed tourists shuffled their way through the opulent surroundings [...]
Labour’s tax addiction will end in tears July 10, 2025 It is now pretty much universally accepted that the government will launch a fresh tax raid in October’s budget. City economists expect the Treasury to be on the hunt for between £10bn and £20bn of additional revenue, though given the expensive u-turns on winter fuel payments and welfare reform combined with likely lower growth forecasts [...]